Cedric Mullins Should Be Brett Baty Replacement
At the trade deadline, the New York Mets acquired Cedric Mullins from the Baltimore Orioles. While widely praised, it was a move that did not really improve the Mets.
The Cedric Mullins of 2021-2022 was a star who left an impression. Truth is, he was only at that level for two years. The subsequent two years he went to serviceable to a bench level player this year.
The player the Mets acquired has a 0.1 WAR, 101 wRC+, and a 2 OAA. This is the player the Mets acquired due to the season ending injury to Jose Siri and the struggles of Tyrone Taylor.
With respect to Taylor, he has a 0.6 WAR, 55 wRC+, and a 4 OAA. As we saw, it was diminishing returns at the plate for Taylor. He is much better suited as a defensive replacement and platoon bat against left-handed pitchers.
Seeing that, the Mets moved Jeff McNeil to CF. The results have been quite positive. In limited duty in center, he has a 0 OAA. He’s already made some highlight plays.
Offensively, he has a 123 wRC+. He gives the most value at the plate for a Mets offense that seemingly can’t get out of their own way.
McNeil was holding his own in center and improving. That said, he was obviously better defensively at second where he has a 3 OAA. He’s excellent there, and moving him off the position creates a problem.
The Mets solution was Brett Baty. Baty has a -1 OAA at second, and he has a 96 wRC+. This right here is the problem.
With Taylor’s struggles, the Mets have overplayed Baty. With consistent playing time, Baty has shown himself to be a below average bat and below average defender at second base.
The bigger issue with Baty is he’s slipping defensively as evidenced by his 10th inning costly error against the Cleveland Guardians. He was once at a 4 OAA, and he’s slipped to a 2 OAA.
Like Taylor, the Mets needed to find a way to get Baty out of the everyday lineup. The answer could have been Ronny Mauricio, but the Mets didn’t fully go that route.
Mauricio has been superior to Baty with a 104 wRC+ and a 6 OAA at third. With his slow foot speed, he’s actually worse at second than Baty.
Mark Vientos has started hitting again, and he is one of the few bats in this lineup that can carry the offense. He’s been hitting well since July 10, and he’s had a number of clutch hits.
Given his defensive limitations, he should be the primary DH with occasional spells at third. That should leave third for Mauricio.
That is what the Mullins trade afforded the Mets. They can put their best team on the field. It’s now up to David Stearns and Carlos Mendoza to do it.
McNeil is the everyday second baseman. That improves the lineup and defense. With Mauricio at third and Mullins in center, Baty moves to the bench.
That defense with Vientos at DH is the Mets optimal lineup. Against left-handed pitchers, they can pivot by getting Taylor into the lineup, and even with Mauricio being a switch hitter, they can play Vientos at third with Starling Marte as the DH.
But make no mistake, the Mets are a better team with Baty as a quality bench player. He can provide late inning defense or a pinch hitting opportunity when needed. That’s when he is at his best.
This is what the Mullins trade afforded the Mets. They can now optimally use their roster. It’s now just time the Mets started doing that.
Unconvinced baty even belongs on the bench at this point. Would prefer acuna’s speed and D for the bench
Don’t disagree