Mark Vientos
New York Mets fans patience with Brett Baty and Mark Vientos has understandably run out. For some reason, most of the vitriol is directed towards Vientos, and bafflingly the Mets are more invested in Baty.
For a good chunk of the season, we’ve seen some form of a Baty/Vientos platoon. That means more Baty, which can only mean the Mets want to be bad.
For their careers, Vientos has a 98 wRC+ against right-handed pitching. Baty has a 93. Vientos is better against right-handed pitching, and yet, the Mets force Baty’s weaker bat into the lineup.
We’ve seen Vientos have a 27 home run season followed by a GREAT postseason. Baty literally only has one good 24 game stretch.
We can conjure a scenario where Vientos can be that 27 home run guy again. That goes double when you consider he’s historically taken off around Memorial Day (minor league track record).
There’s nothing to suggest Baty is anything more than a back of the bench utility guy. He’s a less fun version of Joe McEwing, who will be never have anything like McEwing’s inexplicable success against Randy Johnson.
We can’t make this about defense either. They’re not third basemen anymore. Baty was far better at third, but Vientos is much better than Baty.
There is literally no justification for playing Baty. He’s the guy who at the end of his career he won’t be a “has been,” he will be a “never was.”
At least with Vientos, there’s something. We’ve seen success, and we’ve seen him come through in the biggest moments. Again, Baty has one good 24 game stretch.
Looking more at Vientos, he struggled at each promotion in the minors. He adjusted, dominated, and repeated. This is a guy who has had real struggles, and he has a history of figuring it out . . . when given the opportunity.
Baty doesn’t. It’s not who he is.
Consider this, Baty is literally only 28 days older than Vientos. Both were drafted out of high school, but Baty was drafted two years after Vientos.
As a result, while Vientos was trying to figure it out against players 2-3 years older in the Sally League, Baty was dominating high schoolers 2-3 years younger than him. Somehow, the Mets constantly go away from the player who fought to go with Baty.
Vientos has had Major League success. He’s shown the ability to make adjustments and thrive. Baty’s never done that.
Let’s stop lying to ourselves. Play Vientos. Sit Baty.
The New York Mets twelve game losing streak is finally over. Mark Vientos went from embarrassingly running through a stop sign to a go-ahead RBI single.
This magic was brought to us by Bark in the Park Night. Dogs and Mets games. Sounds like the 2000 Mets blaring “Who Let the Dogs Out” during their pennant run.
That’s right. As Timo Perez caught the final out, and the Mets players swarmed NLCS MCP Mike Hampton, “Who Let the Dogs Out” blared across Shea Stadium.
The song wasn’t exactly embraced, and there was the blight of the Baha Men on the Mets dugout in the World Series. We can all forget the Z100 trying too hard version of “Who Let the Mets Out.”
However, we’re two years removed from the 2024 magical run to the NLCS. That team was left for dead only to rally around Grimace and OMG. Sometimes, you need these goofball things to get you going.
The 2026 Mets broke the 12 game losing streak with the dogs at the ballpark. The 2000 Mets were powered by that song to a pennant. Let’s embrace this same spirit that worked so well in 2024.
Time to dust off “Who Let the Dogs Out” even if no one wants to hear it.
Make no mistake, Brett Baty is not the reason the New York Mets lost 12 straight games. Rather, it is the thought process that has led to Baty’s consistent playing time that is the reason the Mets have grossly underachieved.
This season, Baty is has a 36 wRC+. He’s hitting .209/.214/.284. He was the last qualified hitter to draw a walk, and he’s 2-for-his last 26. He’s bad.
Here’s the dirty little secret: this is no outlier. This is who he is.
At the trade deadline last year, the Mets reportedly refused to send Baty to the Chicago White Sox for Luis Robert Jr. At the time, Baty was hitting a robust .277/.284/.404.
That led to the Mets pivoting to trade for Cedric Mullins, who hit .182/.284/.281 for the Mets. While we can point to Robert’s numbers that year, Mullins was equally bad with no real hope of upside.
The Mets set part of the stages for their collapse by holding onto Baty who didn’t even have a .700 OPS. Moreover, entering the 2025 season, Baty had a career .607 OPS.
The obvious justification for the Mets decision is going to be Baty’s August. From August 2 – September 2, Baty hit .346/.418/.519. It seemed like promise FINALLY fulfilled.
Digging through the numbers, Baty had a highly unsustainable .407 BABIP. His 91.7 MPH exit velocities were roughly Major League average, and he had a 61.9 GB%.
These numbers screamed regression risk. We saw just that at the end of the season. From September 3 – 26, Baty hit ..255/.296/.471. Even more troubling, those numbers were buoyed by a .345 BABIP.
Instead of focusing on all of Baty’s career, his numbers before the trade deadline, or the final 18 games of the season, the Mets focused on that sweet, sweet 24 game sample size.
It is the epitome of conformation bias. The Mets looked at some underlying data, and they decided those 24 games were indicative of what Baty is whole disregarding the other 278 games.
Relying on their confirmation bias, the Mets handed Baty an everyday role, albeit one that saw him move between three positions. He was handed a job based off a great 21 game stretch.
The other 109 games were of zero consequence. There were people in the Mets organization who believe in Baty, and they used 21 games to justify giving him a starting role.
The end result has been the worst hitter on the Mets. We have seen him bad in right and worse at first base. He can’t hit enough to hit for a pitcher, so DH is out.
Looking at all the numbers, Baty has a bad career 7.3 BB%. He’s got an awful 26.2 K%. There’s no underlying exit velocity hope as Baty has a terrible 19.8 LD% and 51.7 GB%.
And yet, the Mets couldn’t wait to sideline Mark Vientos off a 27 HR season to play Baty last year. They entered this year guaranteeing him an everyday role.
The 2025 Mets were a massive disappointment. This year seems poised to be worse. It’s not Brett Baty’s fault. The fault is the process being utilized to determine Baty is an everyday player who should not be removed from the lineup no matter the results.
There were many reasons the 2024 New York Mets came back from the dead to make it to Game 6 of the NLCS. One of the biggest was Mark Vientos.
While he kept giving that team reasons to give him a job, they kept holding him back. Finally, when they had no other choice, Vientos grabbed a job and didn’t let go.
In 2024, Vientos had a 132 wRC+, which if he qualified, would have been the best along National League third baseman. If you didn’t believe there, he followed up with a great postseason.
Unfortunately, he struggled in 2025. There were injuries. There was a change in his successful approach and just about all things Eric Chavez. There was also the fact once he faltered the Mets just jumped at the chance to give the job back to Brett Baty.
It’s no secret Vientos isn’t a David Stearns style player. After all, he is a poor defender. However, Vientos has game changing offensive ability, and you could argue that was one of the many things missing during the 2025 Mets collapse.
Vientos showed some glimpses, and he did force the issue for the vacant DH spot. However, Vientos wasn’t the same player, and entering the offseason, he was a purposeful afterthought.
Vientos was relegated to be nothing mouse than a platoon bat. It was so absurd that when a right-handed pitcher entered a game, Vientos was automatically lifted for Baty.
The man once floated as Pete Alonso’s replacement was a non-factor once Alonso actually left. A bad WBC and Spring Training didn’t help matters.
Much like 2024, the Mets were doing all they could to not give Vientos a job. Like 2024, with injuries, opportunities are presenting themselves to Vientos, and he is more than earning a job.
Trying to figure out playing time at first and DH is tough when you have Baty, Jorge Polanco, and Vientos. For the short term, it’s easy because Vientos is the only one healthy. In the long term, Vientos can again make it easy by hitting like he can.
Vientos has the potential to be the Mets hitter not named Juan Soto. At the plate, he has 30+ HR power and can post a wRC+ above 130. That’s the type of bat that needs to be in this Mets lineup.
Vientos can hit. He can be a game changer. We saw in 2024 he can take the Mets to another level. We are again seeing that player, and as a result, he needs to be in the lineup everyday even when everyone is healthy.
With Pete Alonso signing with the Baltimore Orioles, the New York Mets now have to figure out who will be their Opening Day first baseman. With the team giving all indications they were interested in moving on from Alonso, it would appear the team can now set those plans in motion.
The suggestion of Paul Goldschmidt was just bad. Goldschmidt was barely a league average hitter with a 104 OPS+. That was his second straight season at that mark.
Defensively, he dropped to a -2 OAA. That’s far better than Alonso, but it’s still below average. You can’t be a below average first baseman and not hit.
There was the Willson Contreras suggestion. This is an interesting one, and it is one that could potentially be a fit.
Now, Wilson was a surprise defensively with a 4 OAA at first. That does marry with David Stearns’ run prevention mantra. He’s still at a 123 OPS+ marking the fourth straight season he was at that mark or better.
Contreras has only two years remaining on his deal, and that would seem to marry the Mets vision of not having deals larger than three years added to the payroll this offseason.
Contreras would make the Mets better. Certainly more that they are at the moment. However, it is the trade aspect that is a problem.
The Mets are looking to eventually have a youth movement. Nolan McLean is already the staff ace. Carson Benge is already in discussions to be the Opening Day center fielder. They are looking for the when and where with Jett Williams.
They are also bracing for a potential salary cap after this season, and/or more stringent constraints on their ability to flex their financial muscle. Certainly, it cannot be a coincidence the Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers are focused on three year deals this offseason.
If that is the case, why not give Mark Vientos a shot at first base. Why waste prospect capital? Why not hand the reigns to someone who has hit 27 homers for you and has had a great postseason. Moreover, the Mets were ready to give him the job last year if Alonso did not take the job.
We can all admit 2025 was a bad season for Vientos. It was for the 2025 Mets, but one bad year is a dumb way to form judgments on players. Players have ups and downs, and we should not judge a player off one bad season. If that was the case, Alonso would have been gone after the COVID year.
In 2025, Vientos still had strong exit velocity numbers, and he had the same launch angle. He has also admitted his approach entering the 2025 season led to some of his struggles. There were also the injuries.
Defensively, the Mets have moved on from him at third, and that is understandable. That said, he was always best suited for first base. That was never quite a discussion because he was blocked by Alonso. Not anymore.
We can’t really look at the 0 OAA at first last year because he had all of six attempts. Instead, we need to look at his skill set. The best thing about Vientos has always been his soft hands. That will play very well at first.
Vientos has the skill set to be good at first, and he has the bat. This is a Mets team in transition, and when you are in transition, you let players like Vientos step up and prove themselves.
If he steps up like he did in 2024, you have a potential All-Star at first base. You have first base figured out for the long term without having to waste any prospect capital.
If you’re wrong, well, you still have players like Ryan Clifford forcing their way to the majors. You can sign a 1B/DH for insurance. You can insulate yourselves.
However, in the end, if you are building more for 2026, Vientos getting a chance is the best option. We know what a game changer he can be, and he can be the one to put the Mets over the top.
When David Stearns had his press conference at the end of the season and conducted his public post mortem of the 2025 season, he indicated the New York Mets biggest issue was run prevention. Assuming he is correct, and he probably is, the question is how to improve the Mets run prevention.
We can and should talk about what players the Mets should acquire or better utilize. However, that is only part of the equation. A part of that is coaching.
After the 2025 season, the Los Angeles Angels announced they were parting ways with manager Ron Washington. If the Mets true goal is run prevention, they need to act quickly to hire him.
Washington is famous throughout baseball for how he improves players infield defense. As highlighted by Sam Blum of The Athletic, he runs his infielders through his Washington drills:
That is, in essence, the entire purpose of the drill. To work on mechanics for backhands, glove hands and up the middle. The drill forces you to take the most direct route to the ball, field it in the center of your glove and follow through properly to finish the play. Eventually the drill transitions to fungos, where footwork becomes paramount.
The famous story with Washington is his work with Scott Hatteberg. He took a catcher who could not longer throw, and he helped him become a capable defender at first base. This is no small feat.
The Mets need more help with their infield defense than most people realize.
Francisco Lindor had a drop-off defensively. He went from a 14 to a 3 OAA. We all saw he had a down year defensively, and the toe may have been a large part of it. IF the Mets want to get to the World Series in 2026, they will need Lindor playing at a Gold Glove level again.
For all the talk about Brett Baty’s defense at third, his OAA fluctuated through the year. His 2 OAA was positive, but he needs to develop more consistency and get to another level if he is going to be an everyday player.
There’s also the matter of Mark Vientos. Vientos, never an elite defender, went from a -6 OAA to a -7 in 324.1 fewer innings. Vientos was much worse than he had been in 2024.
Vientos is the interesting focal point. He is akin to Austin Riley, who was also known as a bat first third baseman likely destined to first base or DH. Working with Washington, Riley would be a Gold Glove finalist.
The Mets don’t quite know how they’re aligning their infield. We could see Vientos in the mix at first or third. Baty could be in the mix at second or third. Wherever either are, they will need Lindor to be at their best.
Possibly, there were will another first baseman or second baseman in the mix. At the moment, we don’t know how it will shake out. What we do know is player acquisition is only part of the equation.
The Mets need to get the best out of everyone on the roster. From a defensive standpoint, the Mets need to bring on Ron Washington. He is a perfect fit to accomplish their run prevention goals of 2026.
Go back to the 2024 season. We will forever tell tales of Francisco Lindor’s heroics, and the pitching feats of Sean Manaea, Luis Severino, and David Peterson. We will talk about the shrewd bullpen moves of Ryne Stanek and Phil Maton.
There was Grimace, and of course, Jose Iglesias and OMG.
All that is true, but we also need to discuss how the Mets allowed young players have an opportunity to prove themselves leading to the run the Mets had.
Mark Vientos became a slugging third baseman. The missing piece of the lineup. The Mets gave Jose Butto and Dedniel Nunez prove themselves, and they did. As much as anything, it was the youth that helped the Mets on their 2024 run.
Arguably, it was abandoning the youth that harmed the 2025 Mets chances.
Luisangel Acuna was the second baseman on Opening Day because Jeff McNeil was injured. Acuna was the National League Rookie of the Month for the first month of the season.
When he struggled, Acuna was put on the bench in favor of McNeil. Even if he struggled down the stretch, McNeil was good this year with a 2 OAA and 111 wRC+. He was a very good player, but that did not mean Acuna needed to be relegated to just a pinch runner and defensive replacement.
That is why players like Travis Jankowski, who had a brief stint with the Mets, exist. Acuna needed more playing time.
There was also the matter of Vientos. Vientos helped to save the 2024 Mets, and they nearly forgot all that he did for them. Yes, he struggled out of the gate (he’s always been a slow starter), and he had injuries which exacerbated his struggles.
That said, we know what he was capable of doing. This was the Mets best hitter in the postseason. When the DH spot opened up, he went on an absolute tear until they again decided to give him intermittent playing time.
Butto struggled part of this year, and he was shipped off as part of an overpay for Tyler Rogers. The Mets called up Dom Hamel multiple times and only used him once, and instead opted to continued burning out their bullpen when he could’ve eaten innings.
Ronny Mauricio was called up after a rash of injuries. Mauricio surprised by playing an excellent third base, which metrics best on the team. However, he struggled offensively with a 29.3 K% and 88 wRC+. Because of these struggles, he was placed on the bench, unused for much of the season instead of sending him back to Syracuse to develop.
Then, there’s the Mets waiting as long as they did to call-up Nolan McLean and Brandon Sproat. McLean was an ace as soon as he was called up, and Sproat showed real flashes.
Sure, you could justify waiting on them because you never know when a pitcher is truly ready. Jonah Tong’s struggles are evidence of that. Still, when the Mets needed a starter, they waited forever before calling up a trio of pitchers that earned the opportunity.
To sum up, the Mets sidelined a promising young second baseman and a third baseman that helped lead them to the NLCS. They took a talented third baseman and gave him no playing time. They didn’t use their young pitching as the also-rans faltered.
The Mets made a lot of mistakes in 2025. The biggest of them all was abandoning their young players and not allowing them to be a driving force like they were in 2024. That’s partially why they are home in 2025 while they made a run to the NLCS in 2024.
Being a New York Mets fan isn’t what it always was. The 1969 and 1986 Mets defined the organization as a team of what can be. Even the disappointments like 1973 and 1999 showed us that even in losses, the Mets organization is known for the potential miracles that can occur.
Maybe it started with Dwight Gooden missing the championship parade while sitting in a crack house. Maybe it was Kenny Rogers walking Andruw Jones with the bases loaded, or it could have been Todd Zeile’s ball getting stuck on the wall.
Frankly, it was probably the Wilpons getting sole ownership of the Mets organization. At some point, this Mets team went from miracles to Carlos Beltran striking out looking, the two collapses to close out Shea Stadium, and sadly, so much more.
In that vein, let’s try to rank out the Mets collapses. Just a fun little exercise for us Mets fans.
5. 2025 Collapse
This is the freshest, and it probably seems worse that it was. Actually, it is worse than it was, but this is being viewed through the prism of Mets history,
Unlike some of the other collapses, this was a a slow moving train. We all watched on with horror for months as this happened. This was the man getting run over by the roller in Austin Powers.
This collapse started in June with Griffin Canning went down. For months, this team was David Peterson and just four other guys in the rotation, and then Peterson lost it.
Yes, there was so much enthusiasm entering the season with the 2024 shocking run to the NLCS, and the Juan Soto signing. That all said this team was just snakebitten.
This team lost AJ Minter and Jesse Winker for the season. Sean Manaea and Kodai Senga were trying to pitch through injuries. The additions at this year’s trade deadline didn’t have the magic touch. Ultimately, that was it – the magic was gone.
Still on the last day of the season, they had a chance, and they again blew it. This was as bad as it gets, but not the worst it gets for the Mets.
4. 2007 Mets
Unlike most Mets collapses, the 2007 Mets were a case of the Philadelphia Phillies just took it from them. No doubt the Mets fell apart, but the Phillies played baseball at an insane clip instead of the Reds 14-11 September.
The issue with the 2007 is they just ran out of starting pitching. That final week of the season was David Williams and Phillip Humber start games. Billy Wagner was hurt, and Aaron Hellman was on whatever comes after fumes.
We didn’t realize it at the time, but Tom Glavine was pitching with a fork in his back. He was just done, and we saw the Miami Marlins take full advantage.
In reality, this collapse was sown in 2005 with Jeff Wilpon forcing Pedro Martinez to pitch. Also, like we saw with the 2025 Mets, this was a slow moving train as well.
The 2007 Mets slide began in June. From June 1 to the end of the season, they were 54-56. They were just an average team. It was just hard to see at the time, but we know it now. And, we knew it from what we would see the next season.
3. 1998 Mets
The 1997 Mets shocked baseball by somehow finishing with an 88-74 record. They attacked the offseason adding Al Leiter and Dennis Cook in addition to re-signing John Olerud.
They then made the big move by trading for Mike Piazza after Todd Hundley suffered an elbow injury. After some early issues with Piazza adjusting to New York and the booing, the Mets vaulted to postseason contention.
On September 16, they had a big win against the Houston Astros and found themselves a half-game up in the Wild Card standings. From there, they would finish the season going 2-6, losing their last five games.
Making it all the worse is they just needed to win one more game over that stretch. of course, the Mets would completely blow two games over that stretch.
Keep in mind, the San Francisco Giants and Chicago Cubs would play in a winner-take-all Wild Card play-in game. The Cubs finished the season on a 4-6 stretch, and the Giants finished the season losing their last two games.
The play-in game was Steve Trachsel against Mark Gardner. The Mets couldn’t even win to enter this fray. If they won two, they advance to the postseason. It was all for naught as they choked it all away.
2. 2022 Mets
As written about here, the 2022 collapse was worse than the 2007 collapse.
The Mets had Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, and Chris Bassitt lined up in a series where the Mets had to win one game to win the division. Instead, they were swept. At the time, their 10.5 game blown lead was the third largest division lead blown in Major League history. It’s now fourth thanks to the 2025 Detroit Tigers.
Because of the collapse, instead of having a first round bye giving Scherzer, deGrom, and Bassitt much needed rest, they hosted the Wild Card Series, again with their pitching lined up perfectly.
Keep in mind the hubris of Mets fans. At the time, they were actively debating lining up deGrom for Game 3 so he could start the NLDS after the Mets swept the Padres. This Mets team was that good.
Instead, Scherzer pulled a Glavine in Game 1. After deGrom won Game 2, Bassitt was not good in Game 3 with the Mets managing just one hit against Joe Musgrove and his glistening ears.
In many ways, this team unnecessarily panicked. They forced Mark Vientos and Francisco Alvarez into a pennant race after purposefully not giving them cups of coffee earlier in the year. To add insult to injury, Buck Showalter was named Manager of the Year for his guiding the Mets from an easy division title to a team who completely fell apart.
1. 2008 Mets
This is not a popular choice, but it is assuredly the worst of all the collapses. Everything from that season was disturbing.
Rumors still circle about Carlos Delgado and Jose Reyes purposefully quitting on Willie Randolph. Jerry Manuel worked behind the scenes with Jeff Wilpon to force Randolph’s firing. To make it all worse, the Mets did it to Randolph after the first game of a west coast trip began.
Oh, by the way, Randolph was the rare manager fired after a win. Instead, we got Manuel and his clown show. He was at least aided by a rejuvenated Delgado.
On August 27, the Mets led the NL East. Ironically, they opened September by sweeping the Milwaukee Brewers. After that sweep, they were ahead of the Phillies by 3.0 games, and they were ahead of the Brewers by two games in the loss column.
From there, the Mets would go 10-12.
On September 19, they led the NL East by a half-game. Over the final nine games of the season, that became a three game deficit. No, it wasn’t seven in 17, but it was inexplicable.
This team lost six of their final nine games. They were tied for the Wild Card entering the final week of the season with the Marlins (again). They would lose two out of three.
Unlike the prior year where it was Glavine who just didn’t have it, Beltran had a big homer to tie the game against the Marlins. Just when you thought he was changing the narrative from 2006, Manuel decides to go with Scott Schoeneweis, a reliever with a 7.00 September ERA that month.
It was classic Manuel. He was a bad manager making indefensible decisions.
Oh, and keep in mind, the Mets went out and got Johan Santana in the offseason. He was the ace missing in 2006, and he was the starter who could’ve prevented 2007 from happening. Apparently, nothing could stop Manuel, Jeff, and company.
Even if you want to believe 2007 was worse, consider this was the second year in a row only exacerbating everything. To make it even worse, this is the way they closed out Shea Stadium, the same place that saw the 1969 Mets, the ball go through Bill Buckner’s legs, Robin Ventura’s Grand Slam Single, and Mike Piazza’s homer after 9/11.
This loss was the cumulation of everything that happened after Beltran’s strikeout. After this, we had an awkward ceremony, and the team falling apart with the Wilpons getting caught up with the Madoff scandal.
The 2008 collapse was as bad as it gets. Sadly, being Mets fans, we have plenty of years from which to debate.
Weird things happen in the MLB postseason. Since the expanded postseason format, things rarely, if ever, goes as planned.
The first expansion was in 1969. The New York Mets shocked the world that year. Even though the Mets had won 100 games, they beat the favored Atlanta Braves in the first ever NLCS.
The Mets went on to shock the world by beating the 109 win Baltimore Orioles in the World Series.
Four years later, behind the Tug McGraw mantra of “Ya Gotta Believe!” the 1973 Mets won the NL East with only 82 wins. That team beat the Cincinnati Reds in five games (back when the NLCS was five games) to advance to the World Series.
To hear Howie Rose tell it, if Yogi Berra pitched George Stone in Game 6 instead of Tom Seaver, that team likely wins the World Series. Still, an 82 team in the World Series highlights how crazy things can happen.
In 2015, aided by a Washington Nationals choke job (insert Jonathan Papelbon–Bryce Harper joke), the 2015 Mets won the division. Daniel Murphy became Babe Ruth, and the Mets trio of Jacob deGrom–Matt Harvey–Noah Syndergaard led the Mets to the pennant.
If not for Terry Collins, the Mets win the 2015 World Series. He was as bad as you can be, and the Mets largely didn’t win because of him.
It’s also worked against the Mets.
The Mets dominated the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1988 season. However, Orel Hershiser would come up huge, and he’d help the Dodgers with a huge upset. Fueled by Kirk Gibson’s shocking homer in Game 1, the Dodgers beat what could’ve been seen as an all-time great Oakland Athletics team.
In 2000, the Mets had some luck with the St. Louis Cardinals beating the Atlanta Braves. That cleared the way for the Mets to beat the Cardinals and win the pennant.
In the World Series, they faced off against an 87 win New York Yankees team, who ended that season on the verge of an epic collapse to miss the postseason. If Todd Zeile’s ball bounces over the wall, or Armando Benitez throws a strike who knows?
The less said about that World Series, the better.
In 2006, the Mets were the best team in baseball and seemed destined to win the World Series. El Duque got hurt warming up the NLDS, Billy Wagner faltered in the postseason like he always does, and Carlos Beltran struck out looking.
Meanwhile, we watched on with horror as the 83 win Cardinals beat an imploding Detroit Tigers team to win the World Series.
No matter the win total, if the Mets make the postseason, they will be sputtering in. Who cares?
This is still a team who can win a World Series. Everything they need is here.
Nolan McLean is a real ace, and Edwin Díaz is the best closer in baseball. As we saw with the Dodgers last year, you can win getting 2-3 innings from everyone.
We’ve already seen that Clay Holmes–Sean Manaea piggyback work well. It can certainly work with the rest of the staff.
Pete Alonso and Juan Soto had series winning homers last postseason. Francisco Lindor led the way like he’s doing during the current stretch run. Mark Vientos shook off late season struggles to be the Mets best player last postseason.
This Mets team can win the World Series. They have what it takes. They just need to get there. Even if you’re still skeptical, just look at past postseasons to look at how crazy things get.
When you look at the New York Mets offense, it seems everyone is worse than they were last year. The fans are starting to point fingers at Eric Chavez again. As is usual with hitting coaches, they shoulder the blame . . . fair or not.
Chavez or not, two players make you question how good Chavez has been – Mark Vientos and Francisco Álvarez.
Vientos came up from Triple-A Syracuse and raked. He had a 133 wRC+. Among Major League third basemen, only Jose Ramirez was better offensively. That success carried into the postseason where Vientos was great.
That success hasn’t carried forward into this year. There’s a number of reasons including inconsistent playing time and injuries. All told, he’s at an 81 wRC+.
There’s enough there, including a sophomore slump, where you don’t have to even consider Chavez. That brings us to Alvarez.
Like Vientos, Álvarez struggled out of the gate. There were also reasons like a new swing and being injured entering the season. Being a first time father also shouldn’t be discounted.
Since Álvarez has options remaining (Vientos didn’t), he was sent down to Syracuse to work with hitting coach Rick Guarno to get his swing right. He was also there to get his defense back on track.
Álvarez fixed his swing and defense in Syracuse. Since being recalled, he’s hitting .278/.395/.500 with three doubles, a triple, homer, and four RBI.
It’s telling that Álvarez couldn’t get the help he needed at the Major League level. That’s not unusual for young players. That said, looking at him and Vientos, it should make you at least question what they’re doing right in Syracuse that’s not translating in Queens.
Again, it may not be Chavez’s fault. Different messaging helps. On that front, it’s notable Pete Alonso is having his best year since 2022.
The 2022 season was Chavez’s first as the Mets hitting coach. In the subsequent two years Alonso had a significant drop-off. He’s now back at his 2022 level of production. Part of the reason is his agent Scott Boras:
For the first time in his seven-year career, Alonso is using external help to assist him with research, digest data and create personal plans against pitchers. The information comes from people affiliated with his agent, Scott Boras, and from people at his Tampa, Fla.-based workout group, Diesel Optimization, among others. He explained it as something like a front office just for him.
The Athletic, Will Sammon
It’s telling Alonso went outside the organization to get the assistance he felt he needed to get back to his level of production. It’s more telling that it worked.
Seeing how the outside help brought Alonso back to his best, we should at least look at some of the Mets other hitters.
Juan Soto had a 181 wRC+ with the New York Yankees. He’s now at a 143. That 143 would be his worst season mark since his first full professional season.
Soto is still awesome. He’s just a little less awesome than he’s been over the past four years.
Brandon Nimmo was an elite leadoff hitter with a great walk rate. In 2022, he had a 132 wRC+ (down from the previous two years) and a 10.5 BB%. He’s now down to a 117 wRC+ and 8.0 BB%.
Francisco Lindor finished second in MVP voting in 2024. He had a career best 137 wRC+. Being fair here, Lindor has been his best at the plate with Chavez as hitting coach.
Yes, Lindor is having a down year at the plate, but we all saw a drop off after the broken toe. You can’t pinpoint that on anyone.
Looking at the Mets top players, it appears only Lindor has been at his best with Chavez at the helm. Young players like Alvarez and Vientos were better working with the Triple-A hitting coaches.
Moreover, we’re not seeing Brett Baty or Ronny Mauricio develop into the hitters they were promised to be. Coupled with Álvarez and Vientos, something is just off here.
That’s not to say Chavez is at fault. It’s possible what he’s conveying is helping, but it’s also clear there’s a gap where players aren’t getting what they need to produce at the levels we’ve seen them produce.
At some point, Chavez is going to have to be addressed and scrutinized. The Mets offense is too talented for these results. The best hitters have seen a drop off in production working with Chavez.
Something is very wrong here. If it’s not Chavez, it’s something. It’s well past time the Mets figure it out.