Luis Guillorme returns but his future is in serious doubt

Luis Guillorme recently was activated and had a lackluster return against the Marlins. He flied out, grounded out, and grounded into a double play hitting the ball back to the pitcher. Given all the disappointment with the Mets this season, he had totally dropped off my radar and many did not even remember he went on the injured list. Add to the fact that he has only played a little more than 50 games this season producing a batting average of .231 and OPS of .632, makes him even more invisible. While he has only made three errors this year, he has not looked good in the field, the one area thought of as his real strength.

A native of Caracas, Venezuela, Guillorme, who will be 29 at the end of September, was drafted by the Mets in the 10th round of the 2013 MLB draft out of a high school in Coral Springs, FL. At a strapping 5’ 11 tall he was never considered to be a budding star. It took him five years to wind his way through the minor leagues before making an appearance on the big team in 2018, and in his sixth season with the Mets, he has earned, at best, a role as a bench player or defensive replacement.

Over the years it seems that Guillorme’s ability to stick with the team had a lot more to do with his fielding flexibility around the infield and the fact that at times he was the only real potential replacement at the shortstop position. His ability to play third or second certainly worked in his favor. He even took to the mound in a blowout and did allow the Mets to avoid using yet another pitcher on that day. If your team is loaded with hitters, then you can easily absorb a player like him to be part of your team. When you team batting average and OPS leave much to be desired, it is hard to rationalize seeing him come to bat, even with his great eye at the plate.

In 2022 he held up his part of the bargain as a part-time player hitting .273 and filling in around the infield. While his .691 OPS was nothing to write home about, his OPS+ of 101 placed him around the league average. As did his OBP of .351 which by most measures would be considered good. The combination of his injuries and lack of hitting would seem to point to his sixth season with the Mets likely being his last.

But will that be the case in an era where handing out multi-million dollar multi-year contracts is the norm? As much as I think he needs to go, he might just earn a spot on the bench in 2024. His $1.6 million contract expires at the end of this season and if he were to be brought back an argument could be made for either maintaining the status quo or a reduction in pay.

A lot has been written of players who are not starters but often have a six-week period where they step outside the norm and contribute offensively. Perhaps that is his future with the team. Every team needs players at the minor league level as well, and he could make a good living playing in Syracuse with some sporadic call ups to the big team to cover for inevitable injuries.

It seems his future with team can be tied to what happens with the Baby Mets in the off season and which of those players might still be on the roster in 2024. Patience is wearing thin waiting for Bret Baty to either start pounding the ball as he is capable of doing or turning all that reported extra work into playing a more solid 3B. Mark Vientos has shown samples of bringing his hitting up a level, but often still looks lost as the plate and we know there is currently no safe place to play him in the field. Both of these players can be gone in the right deal for a front line starter or standout 3B. One Baby Met not likely to be moved is Ronny Mauricio who is off to a nice start this month (yes, we should not put too much stock in September stats) and appears to have so much potential.

So, while there are some outfielders on current squad who are doing their best to impress and be considered for 2024 bench, Guillorme is one of the only infielders. This might work in his favor. Hopefully, the team will improve over the winter, and we won’t be forced to accept borderline players on the roster. My bet is that Guillorme will not be a Met in 2024.