SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Mets finished last season with two rookies as the primary third-base options, and the team’s new regime is taking the approach both are in the mix for the position in 2024.
Plenty can change between now and spring training, but president of baseball operations David Stearns sees potential in Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio.
That said, both players are unfinished products.
“If we go with some of those younger guys, particularly at third base, we are going to have to challenge them to improve [defensively],” Stearns said this week at the general managers’ meetings. “We weren’t good enough there defensively. We’re talking about Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio: I think they have the ability and the physical tools to be a little bit better than they showed at the major league level last year, so that’s a great opportunity for them to prove that.”
Baty struggled offensively and defensively, prompting his return to Triple-A Syracuse in August after he became the Mets’ starting third baseman three weeks into the season.
Baty, who turns 24 next week, produced an anemic .598 OPS and was minus-four defensively in outs above average, which ranked in MLB’s 15th percentile, according to Statcast.
Mauricio moved from shortstop to second base and left field at Syracuse last season before debuting with the Mets in September.
Mauricio, 22, played five games at third base for the team.
He produced a .643 OPS in 26 games overall for the Mets.
The plan now is for Mauricio to play in the Dominican Winter League, according to Stearns, and receive some playing time at third base.
Mauricio also saw action at third last winter.
“His tools indicate that he can handle [third base], but we haven’t seen a ton of it,” Stearns said. “He is going to need some reps there, but I think he’s got the reaction time and he’s got the hands, so his skill sets indicate to me that he can handle it.”
Stearns said the benefits of playing winter ball for Mauricio outweigh any concerns about his workload, going from one season directly into another.
“He is taking some time [off] now and he’s not going to play all winter, so we’ll make sure he gets sufficient recovery time,” Stearns said. “But I also think especially for some of these younger players, reps matter, so if you can play at a high-level winter ball league, sometimes with significant pressure on you, that’s not a bad thing.”
Though Mauricio dabbled in left field for Syracuse and Baty with the Mets played one inning at the position, Stearns views both players as infielders.
“If at some point either our situation necessitates a more pronounced shift off the dirt we’ll tackle it but at this point I look at those guys as infielders,” Stearns said. “We have two young, gifted players and we probably should give them every shot to stay on the dirt.”
Mark Vientos also saw limited action at third base for the Mets last season, but struggled at the position.
He profiles mostly as a first baseman and DH, and the Mets will have to determine how he might fit.
“I think Vientos is probably more of a bat-first player and relative to the others he probably has the biggest step to take [defensively],” Stearns said. “But he’s also got potentially a carrying tool with his bat that allows him to overcome some of those other things.”
Stearns canceled his final media availability at the GM meetings Thursday because he was “under the weather,” according to a team spokesman.
The meetings were shortened by a half-day because of a stomach bug that affected many in attendance.