SAN ANTONIO — There are holes to fill through free agency and the Mets are a better team than they were a year ago, but the front office's fundamental tenets remain.
Develop young talent.
That's a point President of Baseball Operations David Stearns reiterated during Tuesday's GM meeting when discussing their futures with the Mets, especially with Brett Batty, Ronnie Mauricio and Luis Sangel Acuña.
“Regardless of how the offseason goes, no matter where we are from an organizational standpoint, we have to allow our young players to play,” Stearns said. “This is true every year for us, but this year we were able to confirm it with Mark.” [Vientos] If we can stand up and really establish ourselves and get those opportunities in the future as well, we will be rewarded. ”
Vientos was in contention for the third base position last spring and was sent to Triple-A Syracuse to open the season.
He got his chance in mid-May and had a breakout season that included 27 home runs and an .837 OPS.
Now Batty (who started last season as the starting third baseman) is on the list for another chance.
The 24-year-old played second base for Syracuse last season, and Stearns wouldn't rule out giving him a chance in the outfield.
“We learned a lot about Brett this year,” Stearns said. “We learned that he can take the punches and step back and keep working. I think we also learned that he can play multiple positions. And we added him to the postseason roster. He picked up second base pretty quickly to the point where he was considering playing second base.'' That's pretty important. And his ability to do that leads me to believe that if we ask him to play additional positions. ”
Acuña got his chance with the Mets late in the season as Francisco Lindor battled back discomfort, bringing energy to the lineup and infield.
The 22-year-old rookie posted a .966 OPS in 14 games, and perhaps the perception of him within the organization has changed after a dominant season offensively at Syracuse.
“If I can make an impression at the major league level, that's a good thing,” Stearns said. “And he obviously performed at a very important time of the season for us. I also understand that it was a couple of weeks and I think the performance and the history of all of them is pretty much to rely on. I think there is a large amount.”
Mauricio, 23, missed last season rehabbing from surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
Mauricio later underwent additional surgery to remove the scar tissue.
Stearns said in late October that he was concerned about Mauricio not resuming baseball activities.
On Tuesday, Stearns said the infielder had a “good week” of rehab and is expected to be ready for spring training.
As it stands, the second base position belongs to Jeff McNeil, but Batty, Acuña, and Mauricio could join the mix in some capacity, although the team may still be looking to re-sign Jose Iglesias. There is a possibility.
“If they're all healthy and playing well, that's a big challenge,” Stearns said. “I like having multiple young players with similar talent to them who can play multiple positions. If we're there in spring training, that's a very enviable position to be in.”
