Entering Spring Training, the door was wide open for Mark Vientos to be in the Mets’ starting lineup long term, particularly at Designated Hitter.
The Mets were willing to try some of their young prospects, to be a fixture in the lineup for the 2024 season, and Vientos was one of their hopefuls.
However, he did not fully take advantage of the opportunities in Spring Training. Although he hit five home runs, he barely batted over .200 and still was prone to strikeouts.
So Vientos’ performance was not deemed good enough by the Mets brass, and so general manager David Stern went out and signed J.D. Martinez last week to a one-year deal.
Although Martinez won’t be available for Opening Day this week, due to him going to the minor leagues to get himself back in game shape, Vientos was still shipped back to Triple-A.
Vientos was clearly frustrated, but he had every opportunity to secure the DH spot. Although he showed some of his power, he did not hit consistently and still showed his undisciplined at-bats at times. Sure, he faced some major league pitching, but he also faced some minor league pitchers, and he did not bash the ball in Spring Training, like he did in the minors.
One way for a player to improve is to keep playing, and so Vientos will get more at-bats in the minors. But he had a chance to solidify the DH spot and he blew it. If he was just decent overall, that would’ve been enough for him to snatch the DH spot, and the Mets would not have signed Martinez. So despite Vientos’ disappointment, he has no one to blame but himself, for not being good enough in Spring Training, by still striking out a lot and hitting for a low average.
As one of the organization’s young and bright prospect, one can hope that Vientos will learn from this, and will look much better when the Mets bring him back to the majors, probably sometime during the regular season.
Totally agree that he wasted his opportunity and because he got to the majors without mastering a position other than DH, and he flopped at it in spring training, there is no place for him to play. So Syracuse there he goes. I would have given him ten games at DH before Martinez comes up just to see if he just might answer the bell. Even if he hits in Syracuse, and we know he will, at 24 is it sufficient or smart to have him play DH for 40 games and mostly sit on the bench waiting to pinch hit? That would not be good for either side. If he puts up his normal AAA numbers he will have good value at the trade deadline.
Well said David! Vientos will get another chance, and hopefully he doesn’t feel he deserves it or has earned it, and instead wants to take advantage of it.
Agreed. Hopefully he keeps raking in AAA rather than sulking.
The opportunity that Vientos has right now is probably the biggest of his life. Go down to AAA, mash the ball and learn from A-Z to be a good defensive 3B and 1B. This is his future and this is now. There is no certainty with Baty, and JDM is signed for only a year. Vientos sitting at Citi is no use, he needed to be sent down. He will be back and be back better.
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Vientos wasn’t the only one who slumped. Baty and some of the others slumped too. No! I would not have sent Vientos back to the minors. I would’ve given him every chance to be the right handed DH and occasional back-up third baseman. As for Martinez, there’s a reason why the other teams didn’t sign him. He’s 36 years old and most likely on his last leg as a player. I wouldn’t be surprised if Vientos outplays him in the minors.
Vientos results offensively are better than Baty’s results at the MLB, last year and Spring Training. Baty has a “pretty swing” but he can’t get the results. Normally they would platoon them.
Zack Short, RHB, had a better Spring than Vientos and Baty. He can field the position. He no options left. Vientos has options and he is a RHB also. They should be a platoon.
Joey Wendle had a better Spring offensively than all of them. He has a $2m free agent contract. He bats Left-handed.
Vientos was the odd man out.
Something on which we fans will never have visibility is what happens in the clubhouse and what impact any individual has on team chemistry. Vientos was quoted as saying “I have the biggest chip on my shoulder on the entire team” or words to that effect. That didn’t sit well with me. His AAA stats don’t warrant a chip in a MLB locker room. His decent Sept last year gives him a little credibility, but he’s not earned anything yet except an opportunity. And he blew that.
For those who have played organized sports, you know the importance of confidence and even some amount of arrogance and swagger. It’s a fine line though between that and just being an a**h***. I don’t have anything to go on here but there’s a chance that something like this is happening behind the scenes.
I also think there is something valuable about having JDM mentor Vientos in Syracuse for a couple of weeks. In many ways, JDM is the perfect role model for Vientos. Years from now, I can imagine Vientos being interviewed while getting sprayed with champagne after the Mets have won their third consecutive World Series and mentioning how these two weeks in Syracuse in 2024 were a turning point in his career.
(Imagination going helter smelter this morning. LOL.,)
I like Vientos and also think that he should have made the team. If I were the GM, I would have admitted an error and cut Wendle or at least traded him. Short makes him unnecessary.
Vientos will be back. It’s a long season. He needs to cut down on Ks and make more contact even at the expense of exit velocity.