Third baseman Brett Baty is just one step from joining Mets
Brett Baty of Double-A Binghamton was the Eastern League Player of the Month for June and his since been promoted to Triple-A Syracuse. Credit: Syracuse Mets/Rick Nelson
The hottest player in the Mets’ minor-league system may not be that far from the hot corner in Queens.
Brett Baty was the club’s first-round selection in the 2019 draft out of Austin (Texas) Lake Travis High. He eschewed his scholarship offer to the University of Texas, signed for a reported $3.9 million bonus and has moved quickly through the ranks ever since.
This past week, the 6-3 lefthanded-hitting third baseman was promoted from Double-A Binghamton to Triple-A Syracuse after being anointed the Eastern League player of the month for June. In each of his three minor-league seasons — the 2020 season was lost to the pandemic — he has earned a promotion around the midway point.
This June was something to behold as Baty had a .365/.435/.688 slash line, eight home runs, 27 RBIs and 66 total bases in 23 games. During one 12-game stretch, he hit .490.
“The accolades are nice and having your hard work recognized is nice, but I can’t get distracted,” Baty told Newsday in a telephone interview. “I want to play in the big leagues and I’ve always been a confident ballplayer. But I believe it’s about the here and now: work to improve, be the best player you can be today and things will take care of themselves.”
So one thing he doesn’t do: obsess about the performance of the players ahead of him on the Mets, Eduardo Escobar and Luis Guillorme. What he does do: embrace the recent opportunities the organization has given him to play in the outfield once or twice a week to diversify his game.
“I enjoy it and I like showing my athleticism and learning the craft,” Baty said. “You never know what could happen at the highest level [of the organization]. An outfielder could go down. A third baseman could go down. I am staying where my feet are right now, but while I am here, I am going to make myself ready to play anywhere they might want me.”
Baseball America tabbed Baty as No. 39 in its preseason list of the top 100 MLB prospects; he is considered the Mets’ No. 2 prospect behind Triple-A catcher Francisco Alvarez. In the 89 games he played with Binghamton, he batted .312 with 19 home runs, 59 RBIs and .950 OPS. Some publications tracking the minor leagues envision Baty making his big league debut this season. How he performs with Syracuse and whether the Mets have a need — and at the moment, the NL East leaders might not — is yet to be determined.
Should Baty somehow rate a September call-up, it could present the chance for a face-to-face with a former high school teammate: Garrett Wilson, the Ohio State wideout selected in the 10th round by the Jets. As Baty said proudly, “I was the quarterback in high school throwing him the ball.”
“He told me he caught a game over at Citi Field a few months ago and he said he’s going to be there whenever I make my debut,” Baty said. “I’d like to make it to New York sometime this year and see him playing for the Jets.”
Roger Rubin returned to Newsday in 2018 to write about high schools, colleges and baseball following 20 years at the Daily News. A Baseball Hall of Fame voter since 2011, he has covered 13 MLB postseasons and 14 NCAA Final Fours.
