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While the Mets didn’t have a good day overall yesterday, the team made a trade that should help in a very tangible way over the final two months of the 2021 season: trading for Javier Báez. The Mets also got right-hander Trevor Williams in that deal, and he might be able to contribute as well. But the immediate impact of the deal will be Báez’s presence.
While Francisco Lindor remains on the injured list, Báez appears to be the Mets’ daily shortstop. It’s his primary position, the one he’s played for most of his big-league career and the only one he’s played since the start of the 2019 season aside from nine innings at third base and a third of round to left field.
With Báez short for now, the Mets’ infield options at other positions won’t be any different than they would have been if Lindor were healthy. Jeff McNeil thinks he gets most of the playing time at second base, JD Davis and Jonathan Villar are the most likely players to start at third base, and Luis Guillorme is an option to start at any of those three positions. First base remains the domain of Pete Alonso, with Dom Smith possibly starting from time to time if Alonso takes a day off.
Once Lindor returns, however, the way the Mets deploy these players becomes a bit more complex. Báez said recently that the only scenario in which he advances to second base would be one where he plays next to Francisco Lindor, and that should be what happens, assuming both players are healthy at the same time. That pushes McNeil off second and gives the Mets four options for a starting third: McNeil, Villar, Davis and Guillorme.
Obviously, there will be more than one strange man in the infield, which is a good situation for a team. And given the team’s history and struggles at home this year, McNeil is the guy whose place in the roster should be prioritized, both because of his background as a major league hitter and his recent performances. The Mets could just play it consistently at third base and relegate the other three players to bench roles, using Guillorme or Villar for defensive purposes late in games and relying on Davis to be a right-handed power stick on the bench. while giving him the opportunity to start in left field, a position he played for the Mets but has yet to play in 2021.
But if the Mets are serious about prioritizing offense, they could move McNeil to right field, knocking out Michael Conforto and his disappointing bat from the roster. McNeil has yet to play in the outfield this year, but has played 916 innings in the outfield during his major league career. For context, he played 1,207 innings at second base and a total of 1,457.1 innings in infield.
It would be a relatively drastic move, but if Conforto still doesn’t strike by the time Lindor returns, that would be perfectly reasonable. And that would give the Mets a starting field for Alonso, Báez, Lindor and one for Villar, Davis or Guillorme. If there are days when they absolutely want to maximize defense on the pitch, they could go that route with Guillorme. But even on the days when they go in the completely opposite direction, playing Davis for offense and knowing they are sacrificing defense in the process, they’ll have two great defenders playing in the middle.
If there’s ever been a team to demonstrate how insane it is to assume that everyone will be healthy at the same time, it’s the 2021 Mets. But if they make it in the infield, they should. enjoy the luxury of having several good options at each infield position on a daily basis – and might be able to give their outfield a boost as well.
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