The Mets announced a series of roster cuts today. Most notably, infielder Ronny Mauricio has been optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. They also optioned right-hander Joey Gerber while non-roster pitchers Brandon Waddell and Mike Baumann were reassigned to minor league camp.
The Mauricio move might be a clue about some other moves the Mets will make to round out their Opening Day roster. Joel Sherman of The New York Post reports that third baseman Bo Bichette will play shortstop tomorrow with the possibility of the Mets beginning the season without a backup shortstop on the bench.
Bichette had been a shortstop for his entire career until recently. He finished the 2025 season on the injured list and missed the beginning of the Blue Jays’ playoff run. The Jays activated him for the World Series even though he clearly wasn’t fully healthy, then had him split his time between second base and designated hitter.
Even before that knee injury, Bichette wasn’t considered a strong defensive shortstop, so a move off the position felt inevitable. The Mets signed him this winter to get his bat in the lineup, even though they already had Francisco Lindor and Marcus Semien as their middle infield tandem. Bichette is going to be the regular third baseman but could perhaps serve as the de facto backup shortstop. Lindor is recovering from hamate surgery but is expected to be ready for the Opening Day roster.
Perhaps the Mauricio demotion is a sign that the Mets are indeed comfortable with that arrangement. The domino effect of that stance is that they could be able to promote prospect Carson Benge and also keep Mike Tauchman.
The Mets seem to have three of four bench spots locked up. Backup catcher Luis Torrens will have one. Corner infielder Mark Vientos should have another. Tyrone Taylor projects as the fourth outfielder. All three of those guys are out of options. Mauricio made sense as the fourth guy on the bench but he’s now out.
All offseason, president of baseball operations David Stearns has said that Benge would have a chance to make the team. As a safety net, they signed Tauchman to a minor league deal and MJ Melendez on a split deal. Melendez has an option and was sent down earlier this week. Benge has done his part to earn a spot, having put up a .406/.472/.500 line this spring. Tauchman has been making the team’s decision tough, putting up a .280/.419/.520 line.
Tauchman can opt out of his deal on March 25th if he’s not on the roster. Given his track record, he would likely trigger that clause and find a job elsewhere. If the Mets want to keep him around, then going with this shortstop plan would be a way to do that. Simultaneously, they could give Benge the regular right field job on Opening Day, keeping the possibility of the Prospect Promotion Incentive on the table.
If that’s the route they go, that could have impacts on others. Utility player Vidal Bruján is on the roster but out of options. The Mets could give him the final bench spot now that Mauricio has been sent down but that would mean letting Tauchman slip away. It’s possible Bruján gets nudged off the roster in the coming days.
As for Mauricio, he was once a notable prospect but his progression has been slowed a bit. He missed the entire 2024 season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. He was back on the field in 2025 but was in a bench role for most of the year. He got into 61 big league games and produced a tepid .226/.293/.369 line.
Optioning him to the minors would have the benefit of getting him some regular playing time, something he hasn’t had in a while. However, he has just one option season remaining. If he stays down for at least 20 days, he will be out of options in 2027.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
We like Mike
Shoulda kept Ronny
Sounds like Baty is out of the RF mix. Before spring training, everyone seemed to think the job was his
As a Baty fan, that doesn’t bother me too much. I’ll think he’ll get his at bats manning first, DH, and 2nd or 3rd when Semien or Bichette get a day off.
Baty has been killing it this spring, but Benge has hit just a little better. Baty has more positional flexibility, so it’ll be easier to keep both of their bats in the lineup with Benge in RF and Baty rotating through 1B/2B/3B/RF and a lot of starts at DH.
That may be but if they asked me I’d favor Baty at first and Polanco at DH.
They didn’t ask you, but what difference does that make? You’ve been telling us that all week anyway.
geofft: Are we getting irritable?
Maybe, they should have asked him.
_balderdash But… Benge has yet to show any power. 2 XBHs in almost 35 PAs, neither of them homers. That doesn’t really cut it for a corner OF. Just to clarify, I’m not suggesting that he won’t hit for power at some point, I’m sure he will. but we don’t know when that point will be, and not driving the ball is a frequent explanation for not promoting prospects at any level, much less to MLB.
I would not jump to that conclusion yet, Bill. This is simply the plan for now until Lindor gets back to 100%. Once Bichette goes back to 3, Baty will haveto move somewhere. He had a late start in ST due to a slight hammy strain, so the club may just want to work him into the RF mix slowly since he did not get enough reps there this spring.
Last but not least, no one is ever in or out of any mix after spring training. Players perform inconsistency (or fail to perform), others get injured, and roles get shifted around as the year progresses.
@geofft: all true but Baty strikes me as the type of player who needs a position
To play every day .
We can’t lose Tauchman for the sake of keeping Brujan, that would be loony. In a pinch, Bichette or Polanco can play short. If Lindor gets hurt, then Mauricio comes up. What place does the one-dimensional Vientos have on this team? DH twice a week? Between Polanco, Baty, and Tauchman, it looks like first base and DH is well accounted for.
Mauricio is one Ive wanted to see get a change of scenery it’s clear he has a all the physical tools and pre ACL tear looked like he was on the verge of making the jump at this point there’s no where for him in the bigs hopefully he doesn’t end up in quad A purgatory for the next year or so
Yeah he’s one of the many infield prospects the Mets should have traded when they had value
If the Mets keep Brujan on the roster and lose Tauchman, I will be very, very surprised. Lindor is gonna play pretty much every day, so carrying a glove-only backup just to cover SS for a game a month, tops, seems silly. Bichette can handle the spot now and then… Semien probably could, too.
If Lindor gets hurt and needs an IL stint, then Mauricio will get the call.
Worse comes to worse, they could always find a guy like Brujan floating around somewhere if disaster strikes and multiple infielders go down.
It’s the correct move to send Mauricio to AAA. He’s too raw and needs regular playing time, which he wouldn’t get in the bigs.
Work on the holes in that swing, kid. He’s got the tools.
Be surprised if they don’t break camp with both Benge and Tauchman.
Interesting. Wonder if Mets will seek a late trade of Vientos to clear roster space.
Why do they need to clear roster space? 5 players in the OF: Soto, Robert Jr., Taylor, Tauchman, and Benge in the OF. Add the two catchers, and you still have six openings: Polanco, Semien, Lindor, Bichette, Baty, and Vientos. That is 13.
Taylor’s a zero. I wish they hadn’t re-signed him. .200.
My preference is to keep Benge, Tauchman, Torres and Taylor, with the default last guy being Vientos (I would have thought he’d have been gone long before this).
However, do not be surprised to see Torrens, Taylor, Vientos, Brujan with Tauchman starting in right. Stearns has shown a nod toward being conservative with bench alignment, and honestly a week ago I thought he strongly hinted Benge was not going to make opening day.
I am sort of wondering if Stearns is getting ticked off at Mendoza publicly stating roster moves. He has basically done that with Myers, Brazoban, and now Vientos.
Stupid.
All signs point to giving Benge the RF job. It’s a big risk. Not only has he never hit against MLB pitching, he hasn’t hit AAA pitching. Last season he rose quickly in the minors, doing well in High A and AA ball. But in a short stint (24 games, 103 PAs) at Syracuse, he had a .583 OPS and a batting average significantly below the Mendoza line. This is not to say that’s representative of his talent, which is enormous. But you’d really like to see a guy have success in AAA before asking him to play every day in the majors. Benge is no better prospect than Kristian Campbell was last season. While Campbell started off hot, he was soon overwhelmed by MLB pitching, his defense collapsed and the Sox, after signing him to a $60 million contract, apparently feel he still isn’t ready for the majors. Much safer for the Mets to send Benge to Syracuse to get a bunch of plate appearances and some confidence before asking him to hold down RF on a playoff contender in the toughest media town.
And…. Benge is not even hitting for any kind of power this spring. Not what you want from a corner OF.
Bronx: not so terribly rare for a player to skip AAA. His performance this spring suggests he’s ready, doesn’t it? Or should we quibble about the lack of xbh?You make reference to Benge gaining some confidence: his performance this spring and making the team should give him all the confidence he needs. If he comes north and doesn’t hit, he can go back down, no tragedy.
It is actually quite rare for a position player to skip AAA, or to skip it and succeed from the start in the majors.
And my citing lack of xbh power is not quibbling. Its a significant factor. You think a singles hitter in RF is a formula for winning games?
geofft: I could assume your stance and say, “Oh, it’s just a small sample size this spring”, and point out his xbh in the minors have been good although not outstanding. I’d add that citing lack of xbh power over 32 at bats for a prospect with a spring obp of .472 amply fulfills the definition of “quibbling”.
A nice reminder: sell those Bowman’s now while they’re still prospects.
Couldn’t Houston get in contact with Tauchman’s agent telling him to still opt out before the Mets add him to the 40 man? Because he’d be given a starting job in Houston, whereas he’ll only be a bench bat in New York with Benge slated to start.
Thats not how it works. The opt-out option only goes into effect if/when he is officially left off the 40-man roster. Until then, he is under contract to the Mets.