The New York Mets have a fairly complete infield at this point, so GM David Stearns is turning his attention to other holes in the roster. The bullpen remake is currently happening, with the latest development being the signing of New York Yankees reliever Luke Weaver to a two-year deal, and Stearns has also sent out smoke signals about some of his other infielders going forward.
Specifically, Kai Chang of Metsmerized Online suggested that the Mets may be willing to let go of some of their young infielders if the right deal comes along, based on a report Chang used from all-purpose source Will Sammon of The Athletic.
This is Stearns trying to operate from a position of strength, and an explanation is necessary here to provide some clarity. Corner infielder Mark Vientos was named in the report, but he’s been on the block for some time now, so he’s not a new name.
Infielders Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acunua are, however. The truth is that no one knows what to do with Mauricio. He hits the ball hard, but he’s been hurt and he strikes out a lot, plus he’s not versatile enough to move over to first. Acuna brings a lot of talent and athleticism to the table, but he’s not ready yet, so he might have some value in a trade.
Meanwhile, Jorge Castillo of ESPN confirmed Sammon’s report on Tuesday, stating that “the Mets … have informed teams that both players [Jeff McNeil and Vientos] are available in trades.”
The name that was added there was second baseman Jeff McNeil. McNeil isn’t a new name either—he supposedly fought with shortstop Francisco Lindor during the season, so he’s been considered halfway out the door in a trade of some sort for a while.
Position-wise, the hot corner has largely stabilized. Manager Carlos Mendoza has all but declared infielder Brett Baty the Opening Day starter at third, assuming he comes to camp in shape and has a good spring.
If all of this sounds like a bit of a baseball soap opera, that’s because it is. In some ways it’s a typical offseason other than the sheer number of moves that are being made, but throw in the Mets’ second-half collapse and the omnipresent and ever-voracious New York media, and this is the sort of chaos that ensues.
So what does it all mean? Basically, that all of these infielders are potentially available, some more than others. Stearns is trying to pump up their value with this report, but it remains to be seen if any team will bite on that.