Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Ronny Mauricio

Astros Talked With Mets About Jeff McNeil, Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio

By | at

The Astros are keen on adding left-handed hitting to their righty-heavy lineup, and “at least inquired” with the Mets about the availability of Jeff McNeil, Brett Baty, and switch-hitter Ronny Mauricio, according to Joel Sherman of the New York Post.  Since the Mets are known to be open to dealing from their infield depth, a trade between the two sides would seem to make sense on paper, though it isn’t known if the discussions gained any traction.

McNeil is in something of a different category than the other two players, as McNeil is an established big league commodity.  In fact, the 33-year-old is again producing above-average offense after a couple of down years, as McNeil is hitting .251/.356/.453 with nine home runs over 265 plate appearances.  Between this steady bat and McNeil’s ability to play both second base and all three outfield positions (with a particular focus on center field this year), it is hard to imagine the Mets parting ways with such a key cog in their lineup.

On the financial side of things, McNeil is controlled through 2027 as per the four-year, $50MM extension he signed with New York prior to the 2023 season.  He is owed the remainder of his $15.75MM salary for 2025, another $15.75MM in 2026, and there is a $2MM buyout on a $15.75MM club option for 2027.  Barring a similar contract heading back to the Mets, a McNeil trade would put the Astros well over the luxury tax threshold, which seemed to be an unofficial spending limit for the club last offseason.  Recent reports indicate that Houston might well consider exceeding the tax line in certain circumstances, but bringing McNeil aboard may not qualify.

Landing Baty or Mauricio is perhaps more of a viable option for the Astros, though New York would also want something significant for either player, given their years of team control and their still-recent status as top-100 prospects.  Baty has hit only .220/.284/.352 over 865 PA in the majors, however, and perhaps has fallen out of favor after once being viewed as the Amazins’ third baseman of the future.  Mauricio has a more respectable .245/.303/.400 slash line from a small sample of 238 career PA, and he is back in action this season after missing the entire 2024 campaign recovering from a torn ACL.

While the two youngsters still have something to prove as big leaguers, the change-of-scenery potential could be attractive to the Astros, as well as Houston’s more immediate near-term needs.  The Astros were thin on left-handed hitting even before the heavy swath of injuries that sent seven position players to the IL — Yordan Alvarez, their most prominent lefty-swinger, has now missed close to three months due to a hand fracture.

Jeremy Pena is expected back at shortstop within the next few days, so Baty or Mauricio could be used at second or third base.  Isaac Paredes and Brendan Rodgers are also on the IL and not expected back soon, so a new face at second base would move Jose Altuve into left field on a more regular basis, thus addressing Houston’s outfield needs.  (GM Dana Brown outlined this possible scenario this past weekend.)

Mets Discussing Mark Vientos In Trade Talks

By | at

The Mets are clear buyers this summer with a 1.5 game lead over the Phillies for control of the NL East, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible that they would deal from their big league roster. As the club seeks help in multiple areas of it’s roster, Andy Martino of SNY reports that the club has been discussing infielder Mark Vientos with rival clubs ahead of this week’s trade deadline. He adds that teams have inquired after not only Vientos but also fellow infield youngsters Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio, though Martino notes that teams have come away with the belief that Vientos is the most available of those three names.

It’s a position that would have been unthinkable just a few months ago. The 25-year-old enjoyed a breakout season last year when he slashed .266/.332/.516 with 27 homers and 22 doubles across just 111 games. That seemed to position Vientos as the club’s third baseman of the future in spite of his lackluster work with the glove last season. Unfortunately for the Mets and Vientos, however, things have gone off the rails this year. The Mets were surely hoping that his glove would improve at least somewhat with time, but he’s remained one of the worst defenders in the sport this year. This time, however, his offense isn’t carrying the overall package. Vientos has slashed just .226/.280/.358 (81 wRC+) across 73 games this year amid a power outage that’s seen his barrel rate collapse from 14.1% last year to just 7.3% in 2025.

With Vientos unproductive on both offense and defense, he’s arguably expendable on a club with better options at first base (Pete Alonso) and DH (Starling Marte). Baty, Mauricio, Luisangel Acuna and Jeff McNeil can all hold their own on the infield as well, to say nothing of the anticipated eventual return of Jesse Winker from the injured list, at which point he’ll likely return to sharing time with Marte at DH. All of those options leave Vientos somewhat squeezed out of the mix for playing time, but another club could look at Vientos’s 2024 performance and the fact that he remains under team control through the end of the 2029 season and see an opportunity to buy low on a bat with an All-Star caliber ceiling.

The White Sox, for instance, have interest in Vientos according to a report from USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. Nightengale suggests that the Sox would want Vientos in return for center fielder Luis Robert Jr. after months of connections between Robert and the Mets in the rumor mill. Robert’s value is unlikely to be high enough to land Vientos in a one-for-one trade at this point, though speculatively speaking it’s at least possible he could be had if Robert was packaged with pitching help that would help address New York’s other needs.

Chicago is far from the only team that should have interest in Vientos if he’s available, however. The Diamondbacks are primarily targeting young pitching, but Vientos would be an intriguing fit given the recent loss of first baseman Josh Naylor and the club’s impending plans to trade third baseman Eugenio Suarez in the coming days. The Padres are dangling Dylan Cease in hopes of adding a bat or two this summer, and Vientos’s combination of upside and cheap team control could be attractive to a cash-strapped contender. The Rays are always creative and appear to be at least considering dealing incumbent first baseman Yandy Diaz this summer. The Red Sox are in need of first base help and could benefit from another right-handed bat in their lineup.

A handful of those clubs mentioned remain in playoff contention alongside the Mets, but it certainly wouldn’t be the first time a pair of buy-side GMs managed to get creative and work out a trade that benefits both clubs. Vientos should have broad appeal to teams looking for help on the infield corners or at DH regardless of their competitive timeline thanks to his combination of near-term upside and long-term team control. Of course, it’s far from a lock that the Mets will actually move Vientos. New York stands to benefit as much as anyone from the slugger’s upside in 2026 and beyond, particularly in the likely event that Alonso opts out of his contract this winter. Even in 2025, the depth Vientos provides could prove essential in the event of an injury sidelining a player like Marte or any of the club’s infielders. While the slugger isn’t the key cog in the Mets’ lineup he was last year, all the traits that make him an attractive buy-low candidate would make it difficult for the club’s front office to justify selling low on him.

Mets Willing To Trade From Infield Depth

By | at

The Mets are willing to trade from their major league infield as they look for help elsewhere on the roster, reports Will Sammon of The Athletic. Obviously, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso aren’t going anywhere. Nor are they likely to trade Jeff McNeil, who is having a strong season as a multi-positional contributor. If a trade comes together, it’d involve one of their four younger big league infielders: Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio, Mark Vientos or Luisangel Acuña.

Those players have found themselves in trade rumors at least dating back to last offseason. The 25-year-old Baty has long seemed the likeliest to move, as the former top prospect has not become the offensive player that many evaluators envisioned. The lefty hitter owns a .236/.292/.419 batting line across 251 plate appearances this season. While those are the best numbers of his career, they’re essentially league average. Baty has gotten there in rather streaky fashion. He had a terrible April that led the Mets to briefly demote him back to Triple-A once McNeil returned from a season-opening injured list stint. Baty hit well upon being recalled in May, tanked in June, and is back to swinging the bat well of late.

A natural third baseman, Baty has added second base to his defensive repertoire this season. He has graded as a league average second baseman with slightly above-average marks at the hot corner in a small sample. Baty has been a useful player overall, but he still hasn’t established himself as a first-division regular. He won’t reach arbitration eligibility for another year after this one and is under club control through the 2029 season.

Vientos, also 25, seemed to establish himself as a core piece last season. He connected on 27 homers with an excellent .266/.322/.516 slash line in the regular season. Vientos hit .327 and added five more longballs in 13 playoff games. He hasn’t gotten going offensively at any point this year. The righty hitter has slumped to a .221/.275/.352 showing in 265 plate appearances. Vientos’ average exit velocity and hard contact rate aren’t much different than they were last season, but his bat speed is down a tick and his actual power production has plummeted.

That’s particularly concerning for a player who doesn’t have much in his game to fall back upon. Vientos isn’t a great athlete and he’s a well below-average defensive third baseman. He should ideally be at first base, but Alonso’s presence means that won’t happen for at least the rest of this season (and potentially beyond if the Mets re-sign Alonso in free agency again). He’s working primarily as a designated hitter while Jesse Winker is battling back problems. Vientos is controllable for another four seasons, so trading him now would be a sell-low move, but he’s out of minor league options and not providing much value at the moment.

Mauricio, a toolsy switch-hitter with a very aggressive approach, is in his first season back from an ACL tear. He’s hitting .218/.288/.376 with four homers in 31 big league contests. The 6’4″ infielder is working as the primary third baseman with Baty mostly at the keystone. The 24-year-old Mauricio would exhaust his final option year if he spends another three days in Triple-A this season. He’s controllable for at least four more seasons.

Acuña, 23, has been a light-hitting utility player. He’s hitting .240/.293/.286 without a home run in 169 trips to the plate. His .260/.303/.356 slash line in 640 career Triple-A plate appearances isn’t much better. He’s the best defender of this group who has only moved off shortstop in deference to Lindor. Maybe another team feels there’s enough defensive ability that Acuña could be a low-end regular at shortstop. He has an option remaining but — similar to Mauricio — would exhaust it if he spends another two days in Triple-A this year. That probably played into the team’s decision to recall him just before the All-Star Break. He’s only really getting opportunities against left-handed pitching, so his current usage doesn’t give him much opportunity to improve at the plate.

With the possible exception of Baty, each of these players probably has less trade value than they would have had over the winter. There’d nevertheless still be teams interested in all of them, but they’re not likely to headline a deal for an impact player. Sammon writes that the Mets are generally prioritizing bullpen upgrades, and it’d hardly be a surprise if someone from this group intrigued a team like the Pirates (David Bednar, Dennis Santana) or Rockies (Jake Bird) that is shopping relief pitching and in need of short-term offensive help.

Mets Recall Ronny Mauricio

By | at

4:45pm: As expected, Vientos has been placed on the 10-day IL with a right hamstring strain, per Will Sammon of The Athletic.

8:45am: The Mets are calling infielder Ronny Mauricio back up to the majors for what’ll be his first MLB action since 2023, as first reported by Mike Rodriguez. Mauricio missed the entire 2024 season after suffering an ACL tear during winter ball in the 2023-24 offseason and began the 2025 season on the injured list as he finished up his rehab from the resulting knee surgery.

Mauricio’s return to the big leagues dovetails with a potential injury for third baseman/designated hitter Mark Vientos, who left last night’s game with discomfort in his hamstring after running out a grounder in the 10th inning. Skipper Carlos Mendoza noted after the game that it “didn’t look good” for Vientos following that exit and added that the slugger went straight to have imaging performed. The results of that MRI haven’t yet been shared publicly, but Mauricio traveling to Los Angeles to meet the Mets certainly seems to suggest an IL stint for Vientos could be forthcoming.

Still just 24 years old, Mauricio has ranked among the Mets’ top prospects for upwards of six years now. Originally signed out of his native Dominican Republic eight years ago, he’s had a relatively slow climb to the majors — granted, in large part due to that injury — but now looks poised for an opportunity of some note. He received a 26-game cup of coffee late in the 2023 season and batted .248/.296/.347 in his first 108 MLB plate appearances. Were it not for last year’s knee injury, Mauricio very likely would’ve gotten a larger opportunity in 2024.

The question of how to juggle playing time and opportunities for the promising young infield group of Mauricio, Vientos, Brett Baty and Luisangel Acuña has loomed over the Mets for some time, but that quartet has never been healthy enough simultaneously to force the issue. Early this season, Baty increasingly looked to be the odd man out, but he shook off a slow start and has been hitting well enough to cut into Vientos’ time at third base. After collecting only three hits in his first 10 games of the season, Baty has tallied 101 plate appearances with a hearty .280/.330/.548 slash (146 wRC+). He’s homered six times and added three doubles, two triples and a pair of stolen bases along the way.

As Baty’s bat heated up, both Vientos and Acuña cooled. Acuña’s month of May was even rougher than Baty’s first week-plus; he hit .204/.252/.222 last month and is hitless in three plate appearances since the calendar turned to June. Vientos, meanwhile, carried above-average production at the plate into mid-May, but he’s batted just .191/.250/.298 in his past 52 turns at the dish. All the while as that balance of playing time shifted in the majors, Mauricio was reacclimating to the rigors of pro ball and readying for another opportunity — one that now looks to have presented itself.

Mauricio posted an awful .125/.176/.188 line with a 35.3% strikeout rate in his first 10 games back from the injured list, which were split between Class-A and Double-A. With his rehab complete, the Mets unsurprisingly optioned him to Triple-A rather than call him up after that performance in the lower minors. A return to Triple-A Syracuse coincided with a return to form at the plate. Mauricio has played in nine Triple-A games and collected multiple hits in seven of them. He’s ripped three homers and a double, all while drawing the same number of walks as strikeouts (five) in 39 plate appearances.

The Mets would probably have preferred to see Mauricio draw out this hot streak a bit longer — both given the extent of his initial struggles in the low minors and because he’s yet to play on three consecutive days at any point in his return to action. He’s only played on consecutive days six times since his return to the field on April 27. The Vientos injury likely forced the Mets’ hand, however. Mauricio may end up in a limited role early on, sharing time at third base with Baty, at second base with Acuña and Jeff McNeil, and at DH with Starling Marte.

NL East Notes: Young, Mauricio, Edwards

By | at

Today’s game between the Nationals and the Orioles included a scary moment where Nats center fielder Jacob Young crashed into the outfield wall at full speed and went down, as noted by Spencer Nausbaum of the Washington Post. He eventually departed the game with a left shoulder injury and was replaced by Alex Call in the outfield. Fortunately, Nausbaum was among those to note after the game that x-rays on Young’s shoulder came back negative. The 25-year-old’s status remains uncertain ahead of further evaluation tomorrow, but it’s undeniably a good omen for the club on the heels of an exciting win over Baltimore.

Young, 25, hasn’t hit much in his second season as a regular fixture of the Nationals lineup. Across 124 plate appearances this season, he’s posted a meager slash line of just .215/.300/.252 with zero home runs and just four doubles. Despite that lackluster performance at the dish, however, Young has largely made up for it with elite defense and base running. Young has been in the 88th percentile when it comes to value on the basepaths this year according to Statcast even in spite of his league-leading four failed stolen base attempts. The defense has been nearly as good, as his +2 Outs Above Average leaves him tied for sixth among NL center fielders with other strong defenders like Brenton Doyle and Johan Rojas.

With James Wood and Dylan Crews in the outfield corners on a daily basis and Call posting a solid 114 wRC+ in part-time duty, Young may need to hit more in order to keep himself in the lineup on a regular basis in the long-term, particularly with prospect Robert Hassell III beginning to hit at the Triple-A level this year. For now, however, the Nationals will surely content themselves with a quick return to action for their center fielder, given that the loss of Young would likely force Crews to slide over to center field on a more regular basis. With Crews scuffling badly at the plate himself to this point in the year, the Nats would surely prefer to avoid putting additional responsibilities on his plate at this point.

More from around the NL East…

  • The Mets optioned infielder Ronny Mauricio to Triple-A today after ending his rehab assignment at the Double-A level. As noted by Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, the move is largely procedural in nature given that Mauricio was already in the minors. Mauricio missed the entire 2024 season after suffering a torn ACL during winter ball, and he’s appeared in just ten games in the minors so far this year as he works his way back up to speed with five games at Single-A and five games at Double-A. Now, Mauricio is set to finish getting back into form with the club’s Syracuse affiliate. Given he’s hitting just .125/.176/.188 with a 35.9% strikeout rate so far this year, it’s safe to say that Mauricio is still focused on recovery at this point and likely won’t be a realistic big league option for the Mets for some time yet.
  • The Marlins, meanwhile, have been without shortstop Xavier Edwards in the lineup for two days now due to back soreness. Craig Mish of the Miami Herald relayed today that, according to manager Clayton McCullough, Edwards underwent imaging that “came out OK” and that Edwards was slated to resume baseball activities today. It’s unclear if Edwards is expected to return to the lineup tomorrow, but if a trip to the injured list is being considered that would be an ideal time to make a decision seeing as a hypothetical IL stint could be backdated due May 16 if it began tomorrow. Edwards was one of the club’s better hitters in 70 games last year but has hit just .263/.337/.292 to this point in the 2025 campaign. Javier Sanoja is filling in at shortstop while Edwards is out of commission.

Nick Madrigal Likely To Miss Entire 2025 Season Due To Shoulder Surgery

By | at

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza informed reporters, including Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, that infielder Nick Madrigal will require surgery on his fractured left shoulder. The recovery from that procedure will likely keep him out of action for the entire 2025 season.

The news doesn’t come as a shock. Madrigal dislocated his shoulder in Sunday’s game when falling to the ground after making a throw to first base on a ground ball. On Monday, the club announced that an MRI had revealed a fracture and that Madrigal would miss “a long time.” That timeline was nebulous but the Mets quickly put Madrigal on the 60-day injured list when they acquired Alexander Canario, suggesting they didn’t expect Madrigal back in the first two months.

Today’s news provides some more clarity on the situation. It seems there’s some chance that Madrigal could return late in the year, but the Mets will probably operate with the expectation that he won’t.

The Mets signed Madrigal to a one-year deal back in January after he had been non-tendered by the Cubs. He’s never been much of a hitter, with just four home runs in 940 big league plate appearances. His .274/.323/.344 batting line translates to an 88 wRC+. But he’s tough to strike out and is a strong defender at multiple infield positions.

It also seems like the Mets were attracted to the fact that Madrigal could still be optioned to the minors. Their bench is currently projected to include backup catcher Luis Torrens, who can’t be optioned. Jose Siri and Tyrone Taylor are going to split center field, meaning one should be on the bench each day. Both of them are out of options. Jesse Winker and Starling Marte might platoon in the designated hitter spot and they both have at least than five years of service time, meaning they can’t be optioned without their consent.

That’s three out of four bench spots taken up by guys who can’t be sent to the minors. Throughout a long baseball season, there are situations that arise where players have small injuries that might require them to sit out for a few days but they don’t want to go on the injured list for a full ten-day minimum stint. In such cases, having some roster flexibility to bring a player up from the minor could be attractive. The Mets reportedly haven’t pursued a reunion with Jose Iglesias due to the fact that he would not be optionable.

With Madrigal now unlikely to return this year, the club will have to figure out who their bench infielder would be. Guys like Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuña are on the 40-man but there are arguments against using those guys in a bench role. All three have the capability to be notable long-term pieces at the big league level, so the club presumably prefers to have them getting regular at-bats in Triple-A in order to continue their development.

On top of that, Baty doesn’t play shortstop. If he were the club’s bench infielder, there would be no cover for Francisco Lindor. He normally doesn’t take many days off but he’s now 31 years old and any player is susceptible to getting a small injury from fouling a ball off his leg or what have you. Mauricio is still working his way back from last year’s ACL tear and it’s unclear if he’ll be ready for Opening Day. Mike Puma of The New York Post relayed yesterday that Mauricio is now running at 80% speed and could get into some games before camp breaks.

Acuña is an option but, as mentioned, the Mets might prefer to have him playing regularly in the minors. If that’s true, then they would have to pivot to someone else. Luis De Los Santos and Donovan Walton are not on the 40-man but they are in camp as non-roster invitees. The Mets would have to open a roster spot to add one of them but they both have options. The Mets also have Yonny Hernández aboard on a minor league deal, though he’s not in big league camp. He has some big league experience and would also be optionable if added to the 40-man.

Mets Notes: Bregman, Alonso, Loaisiga, Blackburn, Mauricio

By | at

As if signing Juan Soto to a record contract wasn’t enough, the Mets could be exploring another big-ticket addition for the corner infield.  Ari Alexander of KPRC (X link) reports that the Mets are among the teams who have interest in Alex Bregman, while president of baseball operations David Stearns told MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo and other reporters that the Mets would “love to bring [Pete] Alonso back.”

While referring to Alonso’s market but perhaps speaking broadly about the Mets’ payroll situation as a whole, Stearns said “I think our ownership has consistently demonstrated that there’s going to be resources when we need them.  There is the ability for us to make baseball moves when we think that they’re there to improve the team, and we’re going to continue to pursue a wide variety of areas to continue to improve our team.”

This means that neither Alonso, Bregman, or perhaps a top-tier pitcher can be ruled out during what has already been an aggressive offseason in Queens.  The Mets had so much coming off the books this winter that even with Soto’s mega-deal now factored in, New York’s luxury tax number is still a relatively modest $251.8MM (as per RosterResource’s estimate).  While this is over the $241MM tax threshold, simply exceeding the tax line is nothing to Mets owner Steve Cohen, whose team had an estimated $358.1MM tax number in 2024.

Mark Vientos’ breakout season makes him a lock for one corner infield slot, giving New York some flexibility in deciding what to do with the other side of the diamond.  Vientos could just remain at the hot corner and the Mets could run it back entirely by re-signing a popular homegrown slugger Alonso.  Or, the Mets could shake things up by moving Vientos to first base, clearing room for Bregman as the new starting third baseman.

Both Bregman and Alonso rejected qualifying offers, though in re-signing Alonso, the Mets wouldn’t have to give up any compensation since he is their own free agent.  Signing Soto cost the Mets $1MM in international draft pool money and their second- and fifth-highest picks in the 2025 draft, so signing another QO-rejecting free agent would cost another $1MM of bonus pool funds plus two more picks — this time New York’s third- and sixth-highest selections.  It isn’t entirely out of the question that the Mets could burn such a big chunk of a draft year in search of premium win-now talent, though the club’s preference is likely to avoid another free agent tied to compensation.

Moving onto pitching targets, ESPN’s Jorge Castillo writes that the Mets are one of the teams linked to Jonathan Loaisiga’s market.  Loaisiga was known to have received interest from 14 teams, including both New York clubs.  Mets manager Carlos Mendoza is very familiar with Loaisiga from their shared time together in the Bronx when Mendoza was the Yankees’ bench coach.

Loaisiga pitched just four innings in the 2024 season before his year was cut short by a UCL-related surgery (not a Tommy John procedure).  Multiple injuries have limited Loaisiga to 219 2/3 innings since his MLB debut in 2018, but the right-hander has been an intriguing bullpen weapon when he’s been healthy, delivering a 3.28 ERA over 181 1/3 frames as a reliever.  The buy-low potential is strong, so it isn’t surprising that Loaisiga is drawing such widespread attention from teams in need of bullpen help.

Stearns also provided a couple of injury updates during his media session (hat tip to DiComo and Newsday’s Tim Healey).  The Mets believe Paul Blackburn will be ready for Opening Day in the aftermath of an October surgery to fix a spinal fluid leak.  As dangerous as that procedure sounds, it carried a relatively brief recovery timeline of 4-5 months, and the Mets are encouraged enough by Blackburn’s rehab to now project him on the shorter end of that timeframe.

Blackburn could be another part of New York’s bullpen picture, but Stearns said the right-hander is still being viewed as a starting pitching option.  Blackburn would currently line up as the fifth starter behind Kodai Senga, Frankie Montas, David Peterson, and Clay Holmes, though both his health status throughout Spring Training and the Mets’ further offseason moves could impact that rotation job.  Acquired from the A’s at last year’s trade deadline, Blackburn was limited to five starts and 24 1/3 innings (posting a 5.18 ERA) due to both his back problem and a hand bruise.

It was almost exactly a year ago that top prospect Ronny Mauricio suffered a torn ACL during winter ball action, and Stearns said that Mauricio is now getting back to baseball-related activities.  A former regular of the top-100 prospect rankings, Mauricio made his MLB debut in the form of 26 games and 108 PA for the Mets in 2023, but his injury dealt a big setback to his chances of being a bigger part of the infield mix last season.

Marlins Were Among Teams Interested In Brett Baty

By | at

The Marlins were the sport’s most active seller on deadline day, showing willingness to listen on virtually every short-term asset they had while also targeting controllable young players around whom they could potentially build future iterations of the club. One player sought by Miami’s front office was within their own division; the Fish showed “heavy interest” in third base prospect Brett Baty, reports Mike Puma of the New York Post, adding that Miami was one of multiple clubs interested in buying low on the former first-rounder and top-100 prospect.

Selected 12th overall back in 2019, Baty ranked on MLB.com’s top-100 prospects list every year from 2020-23. By the time the 2022-23 seasons rolled around, just about every publication of note ranked Baty among the game’s 50 or so best prospects. He and current third baseman Mark Vientos — second-round pick in 2017 — ranked highly in the Mets’ system throughout their prospect tenures, but it’s Vientos who’s taken the reins at third base and run with the opportunity. In 259 plate appearances this season, the 24-year-old Vientos owns a hearty .280/.336/.547 slash (148 wRC+) with 16 homers and 15 doubles.

The emergence of Vientos naturally led to some speculation regarding Baty in the lead-in to last month’s trade deadline. However, Vientos’ presence alone hardly means there’s no long-term fit on the roster for Baty. He’s seen minor league work at second base and also played left field in the majors. Current second baseman Jeff McNeil is no stranger to the outfield corners and could shift there. The Mets will also see both Pete Alonso and J.D. Martinez become free agents at season’s end. Baty is considered a superior defender at third to Vientos, so if Alonso and/or Martinez depart in free agency, Vientos could work in more of a first base/DH role next year (or rotate between the two infield corners and DH). That’d free up third base for Baty — if he hits enough to merit the opportunity.

To this point in his career, Baty simply hasn’t done that. He’s played in parts of three big league seasons but managed only a .215/.282/.325 batting line (73 wRC+) in 602 trips to the plate. However, he was also rushed to the majors in ’22 despite only having six games of Triple-A experience to his credit. And, of course, Baty would hardly be the first prospect to struggle at the plate in his first few MLB looks before hitting his stride in his mid-20s. Even Vientos flailed away at a .205/.255/.354 clip through his first 81 games in 2022-23 before hitting his stride in the majors this year.

It’s worth noting that while he didn’t hit in the majors this season, Baty’s still showing plenty of promise in Syracuse. He’s taken 203 turns at the plate with the Mets’ Triple-A club there and posted a sound .260/.360/.497 line (119 wRC+) with 11 homers, eight doubles, a big 12.8% walk rate and a lower-than-average 18.7% strikeout rate. Baty still has a minor league option remaining beyond the current season as well, so even if he struggles next spring or early in the season, he could still be freely sent to Triple-A for additional refinement.

Ronny Mauricio has missed the entire season due to a torn ACL but will be back in the mix next year. A top prospect himself, he has hit at least 20 home runs in each of the past three minor league seasons while playing shortstop, second base and third base. He recently underwent surgery to clean up some scar tissue in his right knee, per Will Sammon of The Athletic on X, but that isn’t expected to have a noticeable impact on his timeline. Francisco Lindor has shortstop locked up for the foreseeable future but Mauricio could eventually factor into the infield picture at third or second base, depending on other developments around the roster.

The offseason will be interesting with regard to the Mets’ corner mix. They’ll surely receive interest in Baty again while simultaneously exploring the possibility of keeping a franchise cornerstone (Alonso) and a still very productive veteran DH (Martinez). Baty could arguably be used as a trade chip to acquire help on the pitching front — Luis Severino, Sean Manaea and Jose Quintana can all become free agents at season’s end — but there’s also a possible long-term role to be had in Queens, especially if Alonso signs elsewhere.

From the Marlins’ vantage point, targeting Baty is perfectly sensible. They don’t have a long-term solution at third base. Jake Burger has handled that spot regularly since being acquired prior to the 2023 deadline, but he’s a defensive liability whose free-swinging, low-OBP approach at the plate leads to wild fluctuations in terms of offensive output. He’s better suited at first base or at designated hitter. Deadline pickup Graham Pauley could get a long-term look at third, but he’s a versatile prospect who could bounce around the diamond in a semi-regular role.

Adding Baty and his remaining five seasons of club control surely holds some appeal, but the Mets are presumably wary of sending Baty to another NL East club and watching him blossom into a regular. Still, the Marlins will have pitching to peddle again this winter (e.g. Jesus Luzardo, Braxton Garrett, Ryan Weathers and potentially even former Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara), so they could rekindle their interest in Baty. He’ll likely draw interest from both rebuilding teams and others simply looking for a long-term option at the hot corner, but it’s far from a given that the Mets will actually move Baty this offseason.

Rimas Sports Agency Facing MLBPA Sanctions

By | at

5:15pm: Reporter Francys Romero relays that Ronald Acuna Jr. hired Rimas Sports as his agency in recent days.

2:20pm: Rimas Sports, the fledgling baseball agency launched last year by rapper and singer Bad Bunny, is facing sanctions from the MLB Players Association for violating the MLBPA’s agency regulations, as first reported by Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic. ESPN’s Jeff Passan, Alden Gonzalez and Jorge Castillo have also reported on the unfolding controversy. Per the ESPN report, Rimas’ lead agent, William Arroyo, has had his agent certification revoked.

Multiple other agencies have filed complaints against Rimas, alleging that the firm has offered large sums of cash and gifts to players as incentive to leave their prior agencies and join Rimas — a violation of the MLBPA’s code of conduct for agents. Ghiroli writes that some players have allegedly been given new cars. She adds that Rimas has had employees who are not certified as agents but have nevertheless represented themselves as such and acted in that capacity. Those employees had been seeking certification but are now expected to have their requests denied, per both Ghiroli and ESPN.

Rimas issued the following statement on the controversy:

“At Rimas Sports, we uphold the highest standards of professionalism and integrity of our industry. Out of respect for an ongoing process within the context of the MLBPA Agent Regulations, we will refrain from making any comments at this time. We remain committed to continue serving our clients with excellence.”

While decertification of a firm’s lead agent is obviously rare and noteworthy, violations of this manner are hardly unprecedented. Former MLBTR writer Zach Links and I wrote spoke with various agents about client poaching as far back as 2014.

Rimas Sports most notably negotiated the seven-year, $63.5MM extension for Rockies shortstop Ezequiel Tovar earlier this year. Included among their other clientele are Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez, Mets infielder Ronny Mauricio, Nationals outfielder Eddie Rosario (who only hired Rimas this offseason), Giants infielder Wilmer Flores, Guardians shortstop Brayan Rocchio, Reds infielder Santiago Espinal and Dodgers catching prospect Diego Cartaya (among others). The MLBPA has informed all of Rimas’ clients about the purported transgressions, per ESPN and The Athletic.

Mets Sign Shintaro Fujinami

By | at

Feb. 14: The Mets formally announced the signing of Fujinami. The team waited to make the deal official, as the corresponding roster is transferring infielder Ronny Mauricio, who’s recovering from an ACL tear, to the 60-day injured list. Players can’t be placed on the 60-day IL until spring training opens.

Feb. 2: The Mets have agreed to a deal with free-agent righty Shintaro Fujinami, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post. He’ll earn at a $3.35MM rate in the majors on the one-year pact and can unlock an additional $850K worth of incentives. Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports that the contract does not contain any language preventing Fujinami from being optioned to the minors. Fujinami is represented by the Boras Corporation.

Fujinami, 29, was a high school rival of Shohei Ohtani and entered Nippon Professional Baseball, Japan’s top professional league, at the same point as the two-way phenom. Early in his NPB career, Fujinami looked the part of a burgeoning phenom himself. He went right from the NPB draft into the Hanshin Tigers’ rotation, pitching to a 2.75 ERA in 137 1/3 frames as a 19-year-old rookie. He turned in a sub-3.00 ERA in each of his first four seasons in NPB and was named an All-Star each year along the way.

Fujinami’s star faded beginning in his age-23 campaign. He’d already been showing some command struggles the year prior, and was controversially left in a game to toss a stunning 161 pitches in a single start — one that began with him surrendering five runs in his first three innings of work. The extent to which that contributed to his decline can’t be known, but Fujinami battled injuries and poor command for much of his remaining time in NPB. The Tigers sent him down to their minor league club on multiple occasions and shuffled him between the rotation and bullpen at various points as well.

In 2022, Fujinami had a resurgence. The hard-throwing righty made 10 starts and six relief appearances with the Tigers’ top team, pitching to a 3.38 ERA in 66 2/3 innings. He fanned 23.6% of his opponents and, most crucially, turned in a career-low 7.6% walk rate. That was not only the best mark of Fujinami’s career but the first time since 2016 he’s posted a walk rate under 10%.

That led to a one-year, $3.25MM deal with the Athletics last year. Fujinami’s MLB career started out in catastrophic fashion. He was absolutely shelled in four starts with Oakland (14.40 ERA) before moving to the bullpen and continuing to struggle, surrendering 15 runs in his next 12 1/3 innings of relief.

Things took a quick turn, however. Fujinami reined in his command beginning in early June, and for nearly two months leading into the trade deadline turned in a 3.18 ERA with a 24-to-9 K/BB ratio in 22 2/3 frames — all while averaging better than 99 mph on his fastball. The turnaround prompted the Orioles to send minor league righty Easton Lucas to the A’s in order to acquire Fujinami in a deadline swap. The 6’6″ righty didn’t quite sustain his recent run of strong results but didn’t regress to his disastrous early-season results, either. He tossed 30 innings with a 4.85 ERA as an Oriole, striking out a quarter of his opponents against an 11.9% walk rate.

Setting aside that miserable start to the year, Fujinami closed out his MLB rookie campaign with 48 innings of 3.94 ERA ball. He struck out 25.6% of opponents, walked 10.6% of them, yielded just a .206 opponents’ batting average, kept the ball on the ground at a 43.5% clip and averaged a massive 99.1 mph on his fastball in that time. That type of production would be plenty commensurate with a one-year deal at this price point — if not more — though there’s certainly some risk, given the tall righty’s first two months in 2023.

By guaranteeing Fujinami a 40-man roster spot and a not-insignificant $3.35MM, the Mets are placing a bet that he can at least sustain the performance he showed from June onward — if not improve upon it. There’s something to be said for a pitcher transitioning to a new league and new culture when making the jump from a foreign professional league to MLB, but the extent of Fujinami’s early struggles was nevertheless alarming. If the final four months of his performance are more representative of his abilities, however, he could make for a nice addition to a radically overhauled Mets bullpen.

New York has re-signed Adam Ottavino but also brought in newcomers Jorge Lopez, Michael Tonkin and Austin Adams — none of whom can be optioned without first clearing waivers. The Mets are also reportedly close to a deal with veteran lefty Jake Diekman, and SNY’s Andy Martino tweets that the team is still optimistic his deal will be completed. Given the mounting slate of bullpen additions, it’s quite possible the Mets try to pass someone like Tonkin or Adams through waivers; neither has five years of MLB service, and the salary agreed to on each player’s big league deal could help them clear waivers and head to Triple-A as depth options.

The Mets are set to pay the luxury tax for a third consecutive season in 2024 and are already well into the fourth and final tier of penalty levels. Any dollars spent at this point come with a 110% tax, meaning the Fujinami pact will cost them $7.035MM after taxes. If he unlocks the full $850K incentive package, that’d cost an additional $1.785MM after taxes, although getting to that point would very likely mean he’s pitched well enough to be worth that amount and then some. The Mets will need to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Fujinami and likely for Diekman (assuming that deal is indeed completed), so additional transactions should be on the horizon within the next few days.

Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

hide arrows scroll to top