Mets Appear to Be Set at Third Base
A rotating cast could be assuming duties at the hot corner
All indications point to the New York Mets being good to go, roster-wise, with just over five weeks until Opening Day (night) on April 1 in Washington, DC.
On Monday, Mets acting general manager Zack Scott confirmed the team’s 40-man roster is “pretty settled”, all but nixing any scale-tilting moves before Opening Day and likely giving more than a couple of players a little breathing room as camp opens in earnest this week.
The Mets had been linked to Cubs third baseman Kris Bryant and Cincinnati’s Eugenio Suarez at points this offseason, but with versatility being a distinctive feature of this roster and pieces in place to sufficiently hold the position above water, those options appear to be dead in the water — at least until trade deadline season.
Without a ton of clarity on who might be assuming those duties on a regular basis but a healthy portion of the Mets positional roster capable of playing the position, Mets skipper Luis Rojas and his decision-makers should have the luxury of matching up on an extremely specific level.
J.D. Davis, Luis Guillorme, Jeff McNeil, and Jonathan Villar have all been tabbed as options at third at one point or another this winter.
Guillorme, entrenched in the most productive stretch of his major league career (.313/.407/.448, 137 wRC+ over 115 plate appearances since August 2019), was named as a possible candidate by team president Sandy Alderson — unprompted, no less — very early in the offseason, and with good reason.
Image via Anthony DiComo/MLB (Twitter)
Davis hasn’t been strong defensively at third (-2 outs above average since 2019), but his offensive potential virtually ensures him a spot in the rotation.
Despite a notable dropoff over 56 games last season, the 27-year-old still owns a .288/.370/.483 slash line over his last 682 plate appearances — virtually a full season — with 129 wRC+ and an average exit velocity of 91.1 MPH, good for 30th in MLB over that span (minimum 600 PA).
Again, just a ridiculously high ceiling, offensively.
Mets manager Luis Rojas spoke on Sunday regarding Davis’ progress at the position, telling reporters, “I think with his work ethic, his baseball IQ, he can keep improving [at third]”.
Davis and Villar were taking reps at third on Monday, and during his media availability session, McNeil told reporters he’ll spend time at second base primarily this spring but would get reacclimated at third and in the corner outfield spots, as well.
The ability to slide any one of four viable options into one spot on the diamond at any time truly is a testament to the depth this front office has put together.
When asked on Monday about the team’s proclivity to send Davis out there on a consistent basis, Scott told reporters, while the decision would rest with Rojas, he’d “be comfortable with that”.
“[Davis] is a really strong player for our organization,” Scott said (video via SNY). “We have some versatility with the guys we brought in here so I feel really good about it.”
Hope springs eternal this time of year, friends.
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