Boy, that Mark Vientos had some solid 2024 season, huh?
After a very tough 2023 inaugural partial season.
This year, he was literally given a golden opportunity, what with the exit of Pete Alonso, and current injuries to Lindor, Polanco, and Mauricio.
Did he grab hold of that opportunity and show that any pre-2026 struggles were due to inconsistent playing time?
No…he…instead, reverted to 2023 performance levels.
In his first real partial season in 2023, he was .211/.253/.367. Lousy.
In 2026 so far, his slash after Tuesday’s game? Just .212/.246/.368.
Equally, and virtually identically, lousy.
Add to that:
Two steals in 368 career games. No speed.
Sub par fielder…as in…
Marv Throneberry meets Chuck Hiller.
And…
Career .200 with 2 outs and RISP.
Career .180 in late and close situations.
Outward appearance of inner fire? Below average.
Disappointing? Well above average.
Mets Keeper?
IMO, no.
Syracuse could use him, though. He hits OK there.
What’s your Vientos opinion, readers? To bail…or not to bail.
My brother said in 2024: “The Mets NEVER SELL HIGH.”
Brother Steve badly wanted Vientos and Baty dealt.
Maybe the Mets need a clear-thinking guy like Steve Brennan on their executive team. He never tells you what you want to hear. He is blunt.
A CAM TILLY & ELWIS MIJARES NO HITTER FOR ST LUCIE!
A 7-0 St Lucie final. NICE!
Elsewhere…
The NY Mets lost to St Louis, 7-0. Can’t win ‘em all. Can’t win enough.
Binghamton garnered 2 hits while fanning 14 times. Lovely. 10-2 drubbing.
Brooklyn’s hitters managed no runs on 4 hits. Lovely.
Their pitchers fanned 15 in a 3-0 loss, a bright point. Jose Chirinos fanned 10 of those hombres, but got the loss because…you can’t win when your team scores ZERO TIMES.
Buffalo whipped Tong & Syracuse 7-2, in a rain-shortened 6 inning game.
No happy Tong Recap.
“WALKING THE WALK” IN THE DSL
OR, IS IT MORE APTLY TITLED “A WALK ON THE WILD SIDE”?
We writers talk the talk.
Pro players walk the walk. Sometimes to extremes.
There continues to be an incredible abundance of walks in the DSL.
The league leading DSL Padres through Monday’s game had played five games this season - and walked 57 times.
Think that’s wild?
20 teams already had 40 or more walks in their 5 or 6 games so far.
And some folks call it pro ball.
The Mets’ two DSL teams have “only” averaged 38 walks over 6 games. By comparison, how is THAT for impatient? One of the two teams then played their 7th game yesterday, allowing 12 walks. Nuts.
The FCL Mets on Tuesday meanwhile proved they love issuing walks, too.
Those FCL Fellas allowed 7 hits, but surrendered 17 runs, due to an insane fourteen (14) walks allowed and 3 hit batsmen. In a 7 inning game.
Where the hometown team, because they led, only batted in 6 innings.
Pros.
PARADA RESURGENCE, AND A QUESTION…
Kevin Parada is 13 for 38 (.342) in AAA, with 2 doubles, a triple and a HR.
Very, very nice to see.
Yet, last night, he batted 9th behind Jackson Cluff in the 8 hole.
Cluff, in 158 ABs, is hitting .152 this season. Not a misprint.
Does Parada hitting 9th behind Cluff make any sense?
17 comments:
Alvarez takes just 4 weeks to return from meniscus surgery. Sadly, Hayden Senger took his .133 OBP back to Syracuse. I am morose. .
Not really. .133 X 3 = .399. Now that is an OBP.
1. Admit your mistake
2. Trade Vientos for a bagel
3. Play Young at first for the rest of the year
Only make the trade if the bagel has a smear…Baty next up
Mark has got to go. It would be good, however, if there was any talent to call up from the minor leagues. Thankfully, right now, Lindor likely returns in about two weeks. When he doesVientos will lose his at bats altogether, as long as everyone stays healthy that is here. With the 2 Francisco dudes back, the line up will be competitive.
Pal88, Baty in his last 15 games, 10 for 49, 18 Ks. Terrible.
Maybe “next up” should be “next OUT”.
Tom,
As a GM I would look for a team that sees Vientos and Baty as players who were high draft picks who have at times displayed power and the ability to hit and just maybe in the right system could produce. If a rival GM sees his system as the one that can make these players successful then ask for a low level prospect in a trade and develop that prospect. What do the Mets have to lose if they no longer have faith in Mark and Brett as Mets.
Yorber Semprum, INF, with the Mets DSL orange team has been promoted to the Mets FCL team. Mack and Tom had both mentioned him as a player to watch in the DSL summer league. Looks like when you hit you are rewarded.
Tom I have agreed with your brother so much over the years...
WE NEVER SELL HIGH...
I am starting to wonder if the next guys we are going to say that about is Tong
I hope we trade Peralta before he has no value...
Eddie, of course, due to bad drafting and player development, we have had little to sell, high or low. But we did sell Crow low. AND…the last time we sold high was Staub for Singleton, or maybe Mitchell for McReynolds, but on second thought, they should never have traded Mitchell.
Imagine a Mets team with an OF of Crow, Benge, Ewing, and then Soto at 1B (he has to be on the field, so DH). Three kamakazies and a Ruthian slugger. Add in Lindor at SS.
Can’t disagree. But they could have sold Baty and Vientos high 2 or 3 years ago. They’ll get much less now.
Great for Yorber. He was too good for the DSL. Glad they moved him up so quickly.
I am beginning to sound like Tom re: the fences. How often have I argued that Vientos needs to go. The only argument I ever offered for Baty was his versatility. I spent a lot of time on the length of his swing making him vulnerable to exactly the pitches on which he continues to strike out. Vientos couldn't read a pitch if the catcher, pitcher and umpire told him it was coming. Why Why Why. Both were held on to as too good to include in trades last offseason. And of course Mendy was seeing good things in Vientos during ST when he didn't hit worth a lick. C'mon already.
I agree with Tom's brother, cousin, virtually everyone in his family. But I don't agree Tom with your take on Alvarez. I'm not a hitting instructor, but I do know a bit about sequencing in movement patterns, and Alvarez's sequencing is absolutely the worst I have seen on the Mets, and by a large measure. The fact that he looks like he is swinging too hard at everything has everything to do with how poor his sequencing is. He does nothing to transfer energy and everything is upper body based. He has to start early to get his bat moving so he can't wait for the ball to get deep. Ask any hitter -- something Keith brought up in an a Soto at bat actually -- when you are in a slump or not making contact you have to wait longer and let the ball get deeper. We are talking microseconds of course. But they are valuable microseconds. Alvarez cannot allow himself those microseconds as he has to get his upper body/arms moving to generate any velocity and adequate acceleration into the ball.
And yes, if he would listen, I could show him two moves with his feet alone that would improve his motion. One in which the feet create a breaking action and another in which the feet can create a catapult action. Both are VERY well known to hitting movement specialists, which I am not. Frankly, I am not making a claim about myself. In fact, I would send him off after the season to Dr. Rose of Titleist performance center for a few days of work. Rose is not himself a golfer but teaches movement. He is expert at what he does and could help anyone get a more effective movement pattern. And I say that as someone who would not want to incorporate some of the moves that work for others under Rose's tutelege into my own pattern. But I respect knowledge and authority, and he has both, and he knows how to work with pro level athletes. I don't work with prolevel athletes in any sport. Luckily for them and me.
Alvarez has a significantly worse movement pattern than either Vientos or Baty. And have you noticed his massive power outage.
Tom: you may see them as the two Francisco's. I fear they are the three Amigos (Long swing Baty, no recognition Vientos, and sequence from hell Alvarez).
On the other hand, I am often wrong, but rarely uncertain :-). And take what I say with the appropriate grain(ery) of salt!
Or, is there anything I can say or do that would make you abandon your faith in Alvarez?
What if I started a go-fund me campaign to help raise money for him to see a movement pattern expert
tong's situation is completely different. Leave him where he is. Let him ingrain the movement pattern. You cannot change just one thing when changing a movement pattern. He has changed his arm angle, which will change his spine angles, and relieve tension on his lumbar spine, which will also change his release point, which will change the way the ball moves and reacts and its initial angle and its path to the catcher, etc. It will also impact how he loads; it will increase his ability to rotate and thus impact his sequencing. Pitchers are like Ferrari's, the tolerances for high performance are tight. He's got to find put a whole new set of pieces together!
I have lost a lot of my faith in Alvarez, in part due to perpetual injuries. But he is better than a lot of mitt men, and there are no immediate system alternatives, unless Parada proves he can continue this renaissance. He needs you to read his suggested swing fixes.
We have to hope Tong and Senga don’t us the same mechanic. I still have faith in Tong, although I am disappointed.
I am afraid that Mark Vientos has used up his opportunities. There is no trust left in the organization for him to perform. I do believe that he will be moved as soon as someone is interested in taking him.
Some guys briefly can have success, but aren’t good enough and pitchers solve them. At age 21-22, Ruben Tejada hit a fine .285 in 800 at bats…then got solved.
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