According to Ron Darling, Carlos Correa was the centerpiece of the offseason for the Mets. Well, the Mets were scared off by Correa’s medical issues and their alleged centerpiece re-signed with the Twins, instead. In 23 games with the Twins this year, Correa resembles Eduardo Escobar more so than a centerpiece. He has a 75 OPS+, compared to a 46 mark for Escobar.
Escobar started off the year as the Mets’ third baseman but his hitting left too much to be desired and the Mets opted to call up Brett Baty, their top prospect whose future was in limbo when the club looked like it was going to reel in Correa. The hits are falling in for Baty right now, which is covering up the fact that he’s striking out too much.
In between Escobar and Baty, Luis Guillorme got some starts at the hot corner, too. So, how have the Mets’ 3B compared to Correa?
Correa – .195/.268/.356 in 97 PA
Mets — .208/.252/.354 in 114 PA
It’s fun to imagine the Mets’ lineup with Correa in it and who knows – maybe playing alongside his pal Francisco Lindor would have made a difference. But we can only go on what actually has happened. And so far, the Mets are apparently no worse off without their centerpiece, regardless of how bad Escobar and Guillorme have been this season to date.
I’ll take Baty and his rookie salary over Correa. We need the ammunition to land Ohtani next offseason.
On another note, deGrom just went on the 15 day DL with inflammation in his elbow.
The Mets didn’t need to sign Correa because they had Escobar and three prospects in Baty, Vientos and Mauricio to play third base. It was excess. The Correa signing just indicated to MLB that the Mets could spend as much as they wanted to to get a winner.
Would be great to see Baty keep improving while holding down 3B. It is interesting that despite the hype surrounding many star players, the game is still played between the lines. It’s going to be long season. And poor Jake