Third base is getting a bit crowded.
The Mets are presently carrying three third basemen, and whereas two of the three have roles that don’t all the time require them to man the recent nook, it’s nonetheless a curious predicament that begs some questions on enjoying time.
Brett Bay, Mark Vientos and Eduardo Escobar are all sharing a while at third base. Baty handles the place on most days as a result of the Mets see him as their third baseman of the longer term. Vientos doesn’t actually have a place proper now aside from a part-time designated hitter, however he did play one sport at third over the weekend in Denver towards the Colorado Rockies.
It was Escobar who was at third base and batting ninth Tuesday when the Mets opened a three-game collection towards the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field. The Mets have been utilizing Baty, one of many membership’s prime prospects, towards left-handers extra usually, however with Ranger Suarez on the mound, the Mets turned to Escobar, who’s 3-for-5 with a double, a house run and 4 RBI towards the Phillies’ lefty.
“He’s been very quietly swinging the bat,” supervisor Buck Showalter stated Tuesday. “Similar to what he did last August and some of September. Escobar was Player of the Month in the National League [last September], people seem to forget that there wasn’t a better player in our league than him for a month.”
Escobar has been enjoying a reserve function for the final 5 weeks with the emergence of Baty. The Mets had hoped that Escobar’s bat would emerge throughout the early weeks of the season however between Baty’s excellent efficiency in Triple-A and Escobar’s personal offensive struggles (.158 with a .530 OPS in March and April), the membership had no selection however to name up Baty.
But the group’s relative lack of offense compelled them to make a transfer for Vientos as properly. The Mets wanted some pop and he had loads of that at Triple-A.
The problem now’s discovering at-bats for all of them.
“We’ve got good players and we’re trying to make use of all their skills,” Showalter stated. “So I think the challenge is separating where the matchups might fall. Sometimes you have to think about how you’re going to approach their bullpen after the sixth inning. Sometimes you’re facing a pitcher that until you get him out of there, doesn’t matter about the bullpen because he’s that good.”
The Mets have been hesitant to carry up Vientos, one other highly-ranked prospect, given his fame as being a poor defender at third base. The group is now making an attempt to develop him on the Major League stage as a substitute of getting a participant who’s totally developed on either side of the ball, however they really feel that he deserves an opportunity to see if he can contribute offensively by persistently hitting big-league pitching.
Using Vientos as a DH makes probably the most sense proper now since Pete Alonso is at first base and he isn’t almost as skilled in left discipline. But the membership continues to work with him on his defensive fundamentals.
“He knows that for him to be able to stay in the big leagues, he’s going to have to play defense,” stated infield coach Joey Cora. “He knows it. We told him last year after the year was over. You can hit all the homers you want, but if you can’t play defense then he won’t be able to stick here.”
Escobar has performed some second base and been within the lineup towards left-handed pitching. The Mets are going to proceed utilizing him in a part-time function they usually consider he’ll produce on the plate as soon as once more.
“He’s capable,” Showalter stated. “I know he’s approached every bat trying to prove a little, just to remind some people that he he’s been a good player in the big leagues for a long time.”
WELCOME BACK, NOW GET OUT
The Mets reinstated right-handed reliever Jimmy Yacabonis from the injured record and designated him for project. Yacabonis was used because the lengthy man out of the bullpen when Stephen Nogosek was injured in April. He went 2-1 with a 9.00 ERA and a 4.62 FIP.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Catcher Omar Narvaez (strained left calf) is eligible to be reinstated June 6 and the Mets assume he’s on monitor to succeed in that mark, barring any setbacks. He continued his rehab project with Triple-A Syracuse on Tuesday. The Mets could have to hold three catchers for a time until they need to threat dropping both Narvaez or Tomas Nido.
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Source: www.bostonherald.com