Diving Into The Mets’ Infield Plans if Pete Alonso Moves On

For the first time since 2018, there is a chance that the Mets will enter the regular season without Pete Alonso as their first baseman. After the club re-signed outfielder Jesse Winker on Thursday, there’s a real threat of Alonso departing New York following what has been fruitless negotiations between the two parties up to this point.

Though the door isn’t completely shut on a reunion, the Mets appear ready to embrace a youth movement on the infield should they move forward without the Polar Bear. Several reporters, such as SNY’s Andy Martino and the New York Post’s Joel Sherman, have indicated that the Mets’ most probable course of action in that scenario would be to slide Mark Vientos over to first while the likes of Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuña would become prime candidates to win the third base job in addition to taking reps at other positions during spring training.

Mark Vientos

Vientos has always profiled as a fit at first base, so having him fill the hole left in the wake of Alonso’s potential departure would make plenty of sense. He appeared in 70 games at first throughout his minor league career with an additional 10 at the major-league level, where he’s posted a two Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) and negative-one Outs Above Average (OAA) over 89 innings.

On the flip side, Vientos put up a substandard negative-six DRS and OAA at the hot corner last season, which doesn’t play given the emphasis president of baseball operations, David Stearns, has placed on defense, particularly at premium positions. He shouldn’t have much of an issue keeping up with gaudier offensive expectations at first base considering he slashed .266/.322/.516 with 27 home runs in 2024, which is just another reason why a change would be all the more reasonable in this case.

Brett Baty

Baty is poised for another chance to prove himself to the Mets, though it may just be his last before his goodwill officially runs out within the organization. A 2019 first-round pick and former top prospect, he’s never found his footing in the big leagues. After essentially beating out Vientos for a spot on last year’s Opening Day roster, Baty hit .229/.306/.327 in 153 plate appearances.

He did make noticeable strides with his glove, however, posting two OAA and negative-one DRS after logging totals of negative-four and negative-five in those respective categories during 2023. If Baty can turn things around on offense while continuing to improve defensively, there’s no reason Baty couldn’t emerge as a meaningful contributor for New York.

Ronny Mauricio

A majority of Mauricio’s experience thus far has come at second base and shortstop, but given the fact that Francisco Lindor and Jeff McNeil occupy those two positions, third base offers his clearest path to playing time. The 23-year-old spent 44 2/3 frames there during his debut season in 2023, but if his skill set doesn’t translate, the Mets could always opt to utilize him as a utility infielder instead.

For Mauricio, everything comes down to his health and the rate at which he recovers from a torn ACL that he sustained in winter ball last offseason. The New York Post’s Mike Puma reported that he may not be ready by the beginning of spring training, though he will certainly factor into New York’s plans once he’s back at full strength given his versatility, athleticism and raw power as a switch-hitter.

Luisangel Acuña

Acuña helped muscle the Mets to the playoffs last year in his first taste of major league action. He came up in September while Lindor dealt with a back injury and batting .308/.325/.641 with three home runs in 14 contests. He was fantastic defensively as well, racking up plus-three OAA and plus-one DRS at shortstop.

As it pertains to third base though, Acuña’s never appeared in a professional game at the position. That doesn’t mean he can’t give it a go in the future, but he may be better suited for the middle infield long-term given his prior experience there as well as his 5-foot-8 frame.

Acuña also has to show New York that he’s taken leaps in his development at the plate, as his small sample size in the bigs doesn’t mask his .654 OPS with Triple-A Syracuse in 2024 nor his overall lack of power and poor plate discipline.

Other Options 

The Mets could technically pursue Nolan Arenado via trade from the St. Louis Cardinals or sign Alex Bregman while moving Vientos to first in a world where Alonso does in fact leave, but they feel more inclined to go in a different direction. Perhaps they could bring back Jose Iglesias as additional depth or hope another top prospect like Jett Williams comes up down the stretch and makes a difference, but the club seems content with its in-house options for the time being. For better or worse.

The post Diving Into The Mets’ Infield Plans if Pete Alonso Moves On appeared first on Metsmerized Online.