news
The Mets call Mark Vientos, slugger infielder ranked by MLB.com as a player on the team 6th most promising player in the minors.
333, 13 homers, 37 RBI, 1.104 on-base percentage and 1.104 slugging percentage in 38 games for AAA Syracuse this season, 2-for-5 in last night’s loss. It was a home run.
He has experience at first base, third base and the outfield, but the easiest way to get a bat in the lineup is to become a designated hitter, where other rookies this season, catcher Francisco Alvarez and third baseman Brett Batty You will be able to join their list of hopeful players. A glimpse into the future of the Mets.
why it matters
Expectations were sky high for the Mets after last year’s 101-win season and offseason waste by the team’s billionaire owner Stephen A. Cohen, but salaries soared to nearly $350 million, It will swell further. This road has been made possible thanks to Major League Baseball’s multi-tiered luxury tax system.
So far, very little has worked. The team lost to the Tampa Bay Rays 8-5They dropped their record to 20-23 on Tuesday, trailing Atlanta in the National League East by 6.5 games. They are also a game and a half behind the Miami Marlins for the NL’s third wild-card spot.
The Mets’ biggest problem is their pitching staff, with a 5.46 ERA in their starting lineup, but offense is also an issue. The team ranks 19th in OPS (a measure that reflects a team’s on-base percentage and power-hitting ability), 21st in runs batted in, and tied for 20th in home runs.
The team’s most valuable hitters this season are first baseman Pete Alonso (13 homers) and center fielder Brandon Nimmo (OPS.830), but even they performed a bit below expectations. In theory, Vientos is a spark, especially when compared to outfielder Tommy Pham, who has a .188 average in 81 at-bats, the most frequently used option among the team’s reserves. there is a possibility.
from now on
Vientos was just 17 in 2017 when the Mets selected him in the second round from American Heritage High School in Plantation, Florida. He was called up to 16 major league games last season, but was disappointed when he went 6-for-36. 1 home run, 12 strikeouts. But he smashed the ball perfectly in the high minor. He appeared in 150 AAA games for part of the past three seasons, batting .294 with 40 home runs and a .566 slugging percentage.
A below-average runner, he hasn’t performed very well defensively, which limits his overall value, and his best position is most likely at first base. The Mets want Alonso to occupy that position for years to come.
Vientos has the potential, at least in the short term, to secure regular minutes in the DH or outfield, relying on three of the lowest-paid rookies despite the Mets having the highest salary in MLB history. It will be.
Both Batty and Alvarez, who were called up in a similar fashion to Vientos last season and suffered late-season injuries, haven’t done particularly well with the bat, but both have held up in difficult positions defensively, and that’s what makes them stand out. It helps keep the team together. in the lineup. Vientos will need to justify a roster spot with the bat.
Outside of the Vientos, the top prospect in the Mets’ system in terms of major league readiness is shortstop Ronnie Mauricio, who hits .354 with seven home runs for Syracuse.
