Most of the significant player personnel moves are done for the hot stove season and we have the beginning of spring training just around the corner.
Barring any major surprises, there are several positions that seem to be set. Francisco Alvarez is expected to be the starting catcher, Lindor and Semien will be the middle infielders, Luis Robert Jr. will man center field, and Juan Soto will return in right field. Several recent posts have described the pitching options both in the rotation and the pen. I won’t elaborate here.
This discussion centers around three positions that have options that I will outline here:
Third Base: Bo Bichette was brought to New York to play third base. It is a position that he has never played professionally. His experience on the left side of the infield as a shortstop makes it a fairly easy transition – only slight differences exist in the angles of the ball coming off the bat and the throwing distance. The ball will get on him a little faster, as the “hot corner” is one of the closest infield positions to the plate.
Bichette was not known for his range at short, but third base has less need for range. Instead, his reaction time will be key. If he struggles with the position, the Mets have two other candidates on the roster in Brett Baty and Mark Vientos. Both have MLB experience at third, and before the Bichette signing one could have assumed that it was Baty’s job to lose. I don’t see Bichette losing the competition for the job unless he is asked to move elsewhere in the infield.
Baty will get some reps there on rest days or when Bichette is asked to DH. My expectation is that Vientos will see little to no time at third.
First Base: When Jorge Polanco was signed, the expectation was that he would fill the void at first left by the departure of Pete Alonso. Polanco has one at-bat worth of experience at first on a major league diamond, so it is not a given that he fits here. In fact, he spent the entire 2025 season as the DH for Seattle. There is much to learn at this position that is different from other infield spots. The bunt plays, the coordination with the pitcher on swinging rollers between first and the mound, the difficult 3-6-3 double play exchange, and the footwork to manage throws up the line are all unique skills to be developed.
Polanco has not stood out as an outstanding fielder during his career at the 2B, SS, or 3B positions, and there is no compelling statistic that would indicate that he has a skill set for a first baseman. This is clearly an experiment with a ready and willing MLB athlete. Brett Baty and Mark Vientos could join in this experiment, as they are both hitters looking for a position in the field.
Vientos has played there sparingly but Baty has not even though he possesses the long, lean body of a first baseman. Both have dug balls at the other corner so they can adapt to the timing. Behind them is up-and-coming power bat Ryan Clifford who played the 2025 season at AA Binghamton and MLB veteran Joey Meneses who spent last year in AAA Syracuse.
Left field: This could be the most wide open competition during the spring. Tyrone Taylor has the defensive edge as he has speed and range that has been displayed mostly in center field. His bat is the issue that caused the Mets to bring in Luis Robert Jr. as the center fielder, so the bat will also become an issue in left.
Taylor needs to come out of the gate raking the ball to win this job. MLB veteran Jared Young has seen some time with the major league club. He spent about half the season at AAA Syracuse last season and will vie for the job, also needing to prove consistency with his bat.
What everyone has been talking about though is Carson Benge. He is a rising star in the development system who has mastered every level he has been exposed to. The big question is whether he is ready to take the jump to the MLB level and perform consistently. The Mets don’t want to rush him into a situation where he loses confidence in his ability to hit the advanced stuff at this level. Expect him to start the year in AAA unless he really wows everyone in Florida. Another option is the aforementioned Ryan Clifford. Besides his primary position at first base, Clifford has taken reps in left at each level of the minors during his time. He has been competent, but his game is power hitting, not run prevention.
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My guess, Bichette, Polanco, and Taylor will be the April starters and will remain so until they lose their starter status.
I think Bichette is safe at third. It's simply too big of a bat to sit down
Baty will settle in as a DH.
Taylor will start at left until Benge is ready
Polanco is most vulnerable
I was hoping that Bichette would have been slotted into first base as opposed to third with Polanco slotted into DH. I believe that once Baty was getting consistent reps at third, he showed he could handle the position. Positive DRS. With consistent playing time, batting .270 with 22 home runs? (But everyone is writing trade him for a relief pitcher. Then when Bichette opts out next year, go find a third baseman to hit .270 with 22 home runs). With Polanco at DH, nothing new there. The wildcard will then be only Bichette at first. Although there are some nuances in playing first, is it more of a challenge than shifting to third? And there is talk that if Benge is not ready, play Baty in left. A third player learning a new position?
I love the additions, just not the defensive positioning.
Sorry, I peaked..
A-Rod made an easy conversion to third.
I expect the same from Bo
Wasn't A-Rod and all-star shortstop with the glove and, well, Bichette is not?
The Bichette conversion to third seems like an easy one. The Polanco conversion at first is a longer shot.
Bichette scored low compared to his peers at shortstop in both range and arm strength. The move to third eliminates any problem with range, but the arm strength may come into play on balls up the line. If he hits .300 I won't worry too much about the occasional ball up the line.
I think third base is easier to play than shortstop. So, I think Bichette, who is a real pro, will easily adapt to third base and give the Mets average fielding skills.
Easiest infield position to play as first base IMO. As such, I think with a lot of advance notice, Polanco will be decent there. He obviously has to get his first base intricacies down, and become instinctual. But Alonso coming out of college was considered a brutal fielder. He worked on it and was decent at it.
When trying to evaluate if somebody can play first base, I think it’s imperative to look at both minor league and major league time at the position. In that case, Vientos has been at first base in 87 games. That, and working on it this off-season, which I’m sure he has been, should make him skilled at it. With Brett, I find it old school, Mets that he never played in a game at first base. Astonishing frankly. I’m glad we have new leadership just for that reason. I move onto Mauricio, and I have the same comment, strong arm, good speed, virtually never played in the outfield. Makes no sense whatsoever, unless they felt he was fast, had a good arm, and is a complete klutz. I don’t think he is a complete klutz. Prior management screwed up here. I really think current Mets management from top to bottom is not that stupid to do that anymore. Guys will get time at different positions .
I was a third baseman
Much easier tha short
Mack, another great thing with Bichette is that if Iron Man Lindor gets hurt, you have a really really good guy to stick a shortstop while he’s out. With all due respect, when Lindor is out, putting in Luis Guillorme or Luis Acuna is a massive downgrade.
Why not Bo in left.
True
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