Luke Weaver has heard the criticism. He just doesn’t think it warrants much more than a deep breath.
The New York Mets reliever arrived at the team’s Port St. Lucie facility this week carrying his gear in a New York Yankees equipment bag, and the image spread across social media within minutes.
For a fan base that watched its front office spend an entire offseason prying talent from the Bronx, the sight of pinstriped luggage walking through the door at Clover Park landed like a fastball to the ribs.
New York Mets Pitcher Luke Weaver Brought New York Yankees Bag to Spring Training
Weaver addressed the situation directly in an interview with Jon Heyman, and his response was about as blunt as you’d expect from a guy who has pitched for seven different organizations.
“I thought it was a bit silly, personally,” Weaver told Heyman. “I understand why people are — I wouldn’t say an uproar — but why they’re talking about it. I get it.”
His explanation was straightforward. The Mets didn’t send him a new equipment bag before he reported. He didn’t have one lying around the house. And his options were limited.
“They don’t first-class air mail a new bag,” Weaver said. “I personally just didn’t have — besides grocery bags or something — I just didn’t really have anything to put my stuff in.”
Weaver acknowledged the optics weren’t ideal. He said part of him recognized that walking into a new clubhouse carrying a rival’s logo wasn’t the greatest look. But he also made it clear that the bag was just a bag — nothing more, nothing less.
“I know that this is just a normal process,” Weaver said. “I just need people to take a deep breath, know that I love the Mets. Now I’m a Met. I love where I’m at. I love the teammates so far. I hope to win as many trophies as possible here, and I hope to do that with the fans behind us and rooting for me. In doing so, the bag meant nothing.”
Weaver’s Yankees Bag Draws Sharp Criticism
The bag might have meant nothing to Weaver, but it meant plenty to the media voices who weighed in before he could explain himself.
Yankees broadcaster Michael Kay did not hold back, according to Pinstripe Nation.
“Show a little respect,” Kay said. “I mean, the Mets deserve better than that. They paid you a lot of money. All you had to do was call up the Mets at some point during the offseason and say, ‘Listen, can you send me an equipment bag so that when I come to Port St. Lucie, I’m carrying a Met equipment bag with blue and orange rather than the Yankees midnight blue and white.’”
Weaver isn’t the first player to commit this particular spring training faux pas with his new club. Last year, utility infielder Nick Madrigal showed up to Mets camp carrying a Chicago Cubs bag — though that drew far less attention given Madrigal’s role and the fact that the Cubs and Mets don’t share a borough.
From the Bronx to Queens: Weaver Joins Mets’ Yankees Pipeline
The bag moment carried extra weight because Weaver is part of something larger. He is one of several former Yankees now wearing blue and orange after the Mets spent the offseason raiding their crosstown rival’s roster.
Juan Soto headlined the migration when he signed a 15-year, $765 million deal with the Mets prior to the 2025 season. Clay Holmes followed, joining the Mets on a three-year, $38 million contract and transitioning from the Yankees’ bullpen to the Mets’ starting rotation.
Devin Williams signed a three-year deal in early December to serve as the Mets’ closer after spending his final season in the Bronx. Then came Weaver, who inked a two-year, $22 million contract on December 22, per MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo.
The Yankees never made Weaver an offer after the 2025 season. Weaver confirmed as much on the “Foul Territory” podcast earlier this winter. “They didn’t have an official offer or anything like that,” Weaver said at the time, though he expressed no bitterness and spoke fondly of his time in the Bronx.
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