Brett Baty and Luisangel Acuña had some tough starts to the season, but they’ve both started to turn things around as of late. However, Jeff McNeil is slated to return soon with the second baseman/outfielder in New York on Friday to undergo more imaging on his oblique before continuing his rehab assignment with either Double-A Binghamton or Triple-A Syracuse.
It’s unlikely the Mets will be able to find a way to keep all three infielders on the 26-man roster, but the Mets aren’t yet looking that far ahead.
“It’s way too early to tell,” manager Carlos Mendoza said Friday at Citi Field. “I think we’ll cross that bridge when we have to. They’re both playing well, you know? So I hope that’s the case.”
The Mets platoon the two at second base, though it’s not quite a straight platoon. The playing time has been somewhat equitable so far, with the Mets slotting them into spots they see as being advantageous for each of them.
“Whether it’s righty-lefty, lefty-righty, pitch shapes and pitch types, how certain pitches will play against their swings, their approach,” Mendoza said. “Also, trying to find a balance to somehow keep them fresh with game action. They’re both playing well, so he makes it a lot harder to try to keep both of them, but yeah, that’s a good problem to have as a manager when you’ve got two young guys making it hard on you to make lineups.”
Neither one was hitting much at the start of the season, but over their last six starts, they’ve each hit over .300. Baty has more extra-base hits and more pop in his bat, while Acuña draws more walks.
The Mets have been particularly happy with how Baty has performed over the last two weeks. The former third-base prospect was booed at his own home park before the Mets departed for a two-city road trip through Sacramento and Minneapolis a week ago, but has been more aggressive earlier in counts since then and has six hits, including a double and a triple, and an RBI to show for it.
“I think it comes down to not missing his pitch early in the count,” Mendoza said. “When he gets in trouble, pitchers are trying to get ahead of him, and he’s either fouling some pitches off or chasing. I think it comes down to when he gets his pitches, he’s not missing them.”
Even when Baty chases pitches out of the zone, he’s still fighting to extend the at-bat. He’s also making hard contact.
The two rate about the same defensively at second, but Acuña can play shortstop as well. Acuña is also used often as a late-game pinch-runner. With his speed and defense, he may offer more versatility than Baty. They’ll have some time to further their cases, but with McNeil eying a return in the next week or two, a decision will have to be made.
TONY’S HOUSE
Tony Carullo, a longtime former Mets staffer, was recognized Friday when the club named the visitor’s clubhouse in his honor. From 1975-2019, Carullo ran the visiting clubhouse, and prior to that, he worked in other roles. He spent 51 seasons with the Mets, starting as a bat boy for the visiting team in 1969. An avid wine collector in his spare time, Carullo now lives in Port St. Lucie where he is still a fixture at Clover Park and often brings in bottles to enjoy at Tutto Fresco with other former Mets staffers.
Brett Baty and Luisangel Acuña had some tough starts to the season, but they’ve both started to turn things around as of late. However, Jeff McNeil is slated to return soon with the second baseman/outfielder in New York on Friday to undergo more imaging on his oblique before continuing his rehab assignment with either Double-A Binghamton or Triple-A Syracuse.
It’s unlikely the Mets will be able to find a way to keep all three infielders on the 26-man roster, but the Mets aren’t yet looking that far ahead.
“It’s way too early to tell,” manager Carlos Mendoza said Friday at Citi Field. “I think we’ll cross that bridge when we have to. They’re both playing well, you know? So I hope that’s the case.”
The Mets platoon the two at second base, though it’s not quite a straight platoon. The playing time has been somewhat equitable so far, with the Mets slotting them into spots they see as being advantageous for each of them.
“Whether it’s righty-lefty, lefty-righty, pitch shapes and pitch types, how certain pitches will play against their swings, their approach,” Mendoza said. “Also, trying to find a balance to somehow keep them fresh with game action. They’re both playing well, so he makes it a lot harder to try to keep both of them, but yeah, that’s a good problem to have as a manager when you’ve got two young guys making it hard on you to make lineups.”
Neither one was hitting much at the start of the season, but over their last six starts, they’ve each hit over .300. Baty has more extra-base hits and more pop in his bat, while Acuña draws more walks.
The Mets have been particularly happy with how Baty has performed over the last two weeks. The former third-base prospect was booed at his own home park before the Mets departed for a two-city road trip through Sacramento and Minneapolis a week ago, but has been more aggressive earlier in counts since then and has six hits, including a double and a triple, and an RBI to show for it.
“I think it comes down to not missing his pitch early in the count,” Mendoza said. “When he gets in trouble, pitchers are trying to get ahead of him, and he’s either fouling some pitches off or chasing. I think it comes down to when he gets his pitches, he’s not missing them.”
Even when Baty chases pitches out of the zone, he’s still fighting to extend the at-bat. He’s also making hard contact.
The two rate about the same defensively at second, but Acuña can play shortstop as well. Acuña is also used often as a late-game pinch-runner. With his speed and defense, he may offer more versatility than Baty. They’ll have some time to further their cases, but with McNeil eying a return in the next week or two, a decision will have to be made.
TONY’S HOUSE
Tony Carullo, a longtime former Mets staffer, was recognized Friday when the club named the visitor’s clubhouse in his honor. From 1975-2019, Carullo ran the visiting clubhouse, and prior to that, he worked in other roles. He spent 51 seasons with the Mets, starting as a bat boy for the visiting team in 1969. An avid wine collector in his spare time, Carullo now lives in Port St. Lucie where he is still a fixture at Clover Park and often brings in bottles to enjoy at Tutto Fresco with other former Mets staffers.
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