Mets360 - Meet Jeff McNeil – starting second baseman for the Mets

by Chris Flanders • August 3, 2020 

No, that was not a typo. And of course, it is not going to happen, but it should. One problem with poorly constructed teams is the notion of players being stuck in positions that are not suitable for their skills set, a topic that has been covered here, even recently, in an article by Chris Dial. Effects of this are seen immediately as an increase in errors, poor live-time decisions, and surrendered runs. All that leads to the obvious outcome of game losses. Unfortunately, this problem extends to second baseman Jeff McNeil, who has been errantly penciled in as the Mets every-day third baseman.

McNeil has been a fabulous breath of fresh air as part of the exciting freshman- and sophomore-level big leaguers that have rapidly made a considerable difference on the team. The infusion of young talent has given the Mets an air of success, enough so, that many projections put this team at or near the top of the NL East. A week ago, that excitement could not have been more palpable; a week later the team looks like it is drowning. So-so starting pitching, terrible relief pitching, hitters out of sync, and poor defense from out-of-position players are already taking a heavy toll.

One of the players stuck in this defensive quagmire is McNeil. When he was announced early on he would be manning third base, the news was widely received with a lot of enthusiasm, although I thought there was room for this to be tempered. Of course, McNeil has a minor league track record of playing third base, but to call him a third baseman by training would be errant. He’s logged many more innings at second base, his natural position, and one he excelled at after making the jump to Queens. All that accomplishment was set aside after Brodie Van Wagenen traded for Robinson Cano, putting McNeil as odd man out for a defensive position.

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