Reese Kaplan -- The Mets "Kneed" to Address LF and DH

While the vast majority of personnel attention for the Mets has been focused on the injured, rehabbing or trying to find themselves types of pitchers, it’s not the only area in need of team attention.  

Right now as the season is nearly upon us the Mets are finding themselves with two outfielders (well, one outfielder and one platoon DH half) down with knee injuries.  Both Brandon Nimmo and Starling Marte don’t have clear timeframes for when they are deemed healthy enough to contribute on a regular basis. 

What’s different is the volume of opinions on how the Mets should handle their current pitching shortage versus nary a peep about what they will do to cover for these two players.  

Now remember that after you get past the stars — Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso and Mark Vientos — the rest of the Mets offense gets fairly sketchy.  Yes, Jose Siri has had some great at-bats this spring to go along with his impeccable defense, but he’s a guy who thus far has not earned his living with a stick in his hands.  

Francisco Alvarez spent the winter trying to reinvent his swing which seemed to lose its long ball power in 2024.  Jeff McNeil is still now two full years removed from a batting title and hasn’t looked nearly as much a hit machine as he once did.  Add in the missing left fielder and right handed hitting DH and you can see where scoring runs could be problematic.

One option for the Mets is to try the newly minted middle infielder Brett Baty at 2B to open the season with the versatile Jeff McNeil moving to cover for Nimmo in left.  That’s not a horrific solution to one half of the problem because McNeil has had plenty of outfield experience.  Power will be down compared to Nimmo but it’s possible if Baty can maintain some semblance of his Port St. Lucie power then he could help make up for the deficit.  The bigger question is how he’d manage to play the field at a new position.  It would leave adequate Pete Alonso at first with stellar Francisco Lindor at shortstop and solid Francisco Alvarez behind the plate.  

Mark Vientos is still a work in progress (though with a great arm) at third base and now you’re possibly adding the risk of Baty as one half of your double play combination.

Right now it would appear that while Jesse Winker will get the majority of DH at-bats given the fact he hits from the left side, what will the club do to attempt to replace Starling Marte for when southpaws are on the mound?  Tyrone Taylor is right handed but not truly known for his bat.  

Luis Torrens is not a terrific hitter either.  There are other options like Alexander Canario as a possibility unless the club wants to venture down the non-roster invitation list and offer up a temporary spot to Joey Meneses.  Both of them swing from the right side.  There’s risk in both cases but they’re probably better options than the existing backups.

Another option would be to see who is still available on the free agent marketplace who wouldn’t command a king’s ransom.  Since they have not increased payroll to address pitching, perhaps at this 11th hour just like last year it could be time to hit speed dial to one J.D. Martinez.  Now before you jump all over his subpar season in 2024 or the fact he’s 38, the fact is that he’s often described as a hitting machine.

He is as valuable for other ballplayers as a pseudo coach as he is to the team who needs him for RBIs.  Last season he netted a $10 million contract but now he might be had for perhaps half that amount. 

Then again, a more realistic approach might be to watch who is getting cut by other clubs as March draws to a close.  Most clubs have already made their first hack at the roster but in most cases it was to remove lower level minor leaguers or others obviously not suitable for a trip back with the big club.  

The further along you move on the calendar the bigger some of the cut players will be.  None having been axed by his current team is going to cost very much and with payroll taxation concerns quite real, it might be a better way to go for someone who might only be needed for 3-4 weeks at most. 

So if it was up to you, how would you fill the Starling Marte temporary absence?  Could you live with Baty playing every day with McNeil in left or would you advocate they bring Luisangel Acuna up temporarily as his glove is a surer bet?  If a miracle recovery happens, Ronny Mauricio exists as well.