Right now is Mark Vientos' chance to show Mets he can handle third base
Mark Vientos made his sixth start of the season at third base Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2023 against the Cubs. Credit: AP/Frank Franklin II
Brett Baty’s demotion Monday means Mark Vientos will have a clear runway to show whether he can handle being a third baseman — something that could definitively increase his value to the organization.
It just might not always be pretty.
Tuesday, Vientos made his sixth start of the season at third — an experiment that one could charitably call an adventure. In his five previous games at the position, he’s made two throwing errors and is responsible for minus-2 defensive runs saved. But since the Mets are going nowhere this year, this stands to be as good a time as any to throw their rookie into the fire.
The trick, Buck Showalter said, is to keep Vientos’ spirits up, despite the growing pains.
“They don’t get really tired physically — they get tired mentally and emotionally,” Showalter said. “The scrutiny, the constant every day, let’s go work on this. It should be when the game starts, you’re in your element and you breathe a sigh of relief . . . but sometimes it’s not that way with young players here.”
Mostly, he wants Vientos to continue to demonstrate that he has the “want-to” to succeed.
“It starts with want-to and work habits,” he said. “I want to feel like this person is going to be as good as they’re capable of being . . . I want him to give himself a chance. He’s done a good job at that compared to when he first started.”
Love for Alvarez
Showalter heaped praise on his rookie catcher Tuesday, noting that when the Mets were playing in Baltimore, he heard a lot about that team's young superstar catcher, Adley Rutschman.
“I love Adley Rutschman,” Showalter said. “Good looking player. That’s what you get when you draft first, second or third or whatever. Our guy is four years younger. Four years. He’s learning on the job. He didn’t go to Oregon State. He went to Port St. Lucie state.”
Extra bases
Outfielder Tim Locastro, who underwent surgery to repair a torn UCL in his thumb, began his rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse Tuesday . . . Citi Field will host its second Battle of the Badges at 7 p.m. on Thursday — a charity baseball game featuring members of the FDNY and NYPD squaring off. David Wright will be the game’s commissioner. Tickets for the event are $20.
Laura Albanese is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. She's been covering MLB since 2014 after starting at Newsday as an intern seven years earlier.
