BRADENTON, Fla. — Jon Niese’s words seem harsher in print (or on a screen) than they sound in person.
Though he has riled Mets officials with comments he has made since getting traded to the Pirates, my sense after chatting with him Friday at McKechnie Field is that he holds no hard feelings toward his old team. He just tends to speak bluntly about stuff (like his praise of the Pirates’ defense and his dislike of the Mets’ six-man starting rotation) and not sweat the consequences.
Besides, to get caught up in those words is to miss the greater point.