Bay puts higher hopes in lower walls

Bay puts higher hopes in lower walls

Ron Antonelli/New York Daily News

Jason Bay is still searching for his first hit in the renovated Citi Field after finishing Thursday's 1-0 victory 0-3 with a walk.

Jason Bay had little time to get acquainted with his new surroundings Thursday at Citi Field due to the Mets exhibition game vs. the Yankees in Tampa Wednesday .

And nine innings against the Braves on Opening Day was still not enough time for Bay to get comfortable with the Mets new left-field dimensions.

We kind of got here (Wednesday) night and we looked out from the dugout and it was pretty hard to get a feel for it unt il youre actually out there, Bay said. Even then as youre standing out there it still by no means looks tiny but it definitely does look a little bit fairer.

In order to try and beef up the Citi Field home run totals as a whole and Bays in particular the team not only moved the outfield fences in this season but also lowered the massive outfield wall to just eight feet.

Citi Field has been a place where potential home runs have gone to die since it opened in 2009. Last season, the Mets managed 50 homers in their 81 home games and have just 162 since its grand opening.

So with the fences now closer to the plate left field was moved in 13 feet from the old mark of 371 to its current 358, and center field from 408 to 398, with right field getting a modest reduction from 378 to 375 will Bay, who has just 18 homers during his first two Mets seasons, start taking aim at the kinder, gentler outfield wall?

No, the wall (being) closer doesnt change my approach, it doesnt change anything Im trying to do, said Bay, who went 0-3 with a walk in Thursdays 1-0 victory over the Braves. But at the end of the year if you have say, five-six fly balls that were doubles or were outs before, at the end of the year that puts your numbers in a different spot. All of a sudden there are more hits, theres more confidence. So theres a little bit of a trickle-down effect. I know it doesnt change what I try to do. Its definitely not, Well now that the fences are shorter Im going to aim for that. Its just hopefully a by-product of having good at bats.

Hitting is one thing, but Bay said it may take several games to adjust to the smaller area of real estate that he has to cover now in left.

You cant do it in one day. Its probably going to take a full series at home, Bay said. We went out there early (Thursday) and we were banging balls off the wall but theres no flagpole out there, there are no nooks and crannies, its just the wa lls are a little closer. Its more the ground covering, the ball is not going to bounce anywhere crazy. Its just getting used to it.

And the Mets hope that Bay and David Wright, to name a couple, can start taking advantage of the new walls and turn Citi Field into a hitter-friendly outpost.

Absolutely, I think David and Jason should benefit because they hit the ball over that way quite a lot so I hope it helps us out, Lucas Duda said. But well see what happens.