WEST SACRAMENTO — Brett Baty got the nod at second base Saturday against the A’s, looking to find some sort of an offensive spark. He’s in a tough spot having never played second base in the big leagues, and he’s under tremendous pressure to perform right now having been back and forth from the minor leagues over the last few seasons, and second baseman Jeff McNeil nearing a return from an oblique injury.
The Mets want to alleviate some of that pressure. The goal this weekend for Baty is simple, with manager Carlos Mendoza saying the 25-year-old needs to have fun again.
“I think he needs to go back to enjoying it,” Mendoza said Saturday at Sutter Health Park. “I know he’s only had 20-some at-bats or something like that, but he’s a big leaguer. It’s making sure that you go out there and then you have fun. You go out there and compete and just be yourself…
“That’s the bottom line.”
Coming into the series against the A’s, Baty was 3-for-27 with one double and no RBI. He has not drawn a walk in 27 plate appearances, and he’s stuck out 11 times. The hot spring hasn’t carried over into the regular season, and he was booed at Citi Field after making an error earlier in the week.
Who would be having fun with that?
Baty has found himself being indecisive at the plate, and gotten himself into bad counts. The Mets are willing to let him work through it for now, especially since McNeil is likely a week or two away from a return, but a demotion might be necessary if this trend continues.
The Mets have not lost faith in their once-top prospect.
“We’re pretty comfortable,” Mendoza said. “We have confidence that he’ll get there,”
With the Mets facing right-hander Luis Severino on Sunday, Baty will likely get another start at second.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Catcher Luis Torrens returned to action Friday night after sitting out most of last week with a forearm contusion. Hayden Senger got the start Saturday in the second game of the series, but Torrens was healthy enough to play.
“No complaints at all,” Mendoza said. “He wanted to be in there today, but I said a day game after a night game, and having not played for about five, six days, [no]. But he’s good today.”
McNeil went 1-for-2 with a walk in a rehab start with Low-A St. Lucie on Friday night, while catcher Francisco Alvarez went 0-for-3 with a run scored, a walk and a strikeout. They’ll continue their rehab assignments Sunday.
With Alvarez still working his way back from March hamate bone surgery, Senger has had a chance to play more. The Mets have liked what they’ve seen so far from the rookie backstop, who has gone 4-for-18 with a double so far.
“We’ve all felt pretty comfortable plugging him in there,” Mendoza said. “This is a guy that we know is going to be able to take care of a pitching staff with his receiving skills, his blocking skill, his ability to shut down a running game, and he’s giving us some decent at-bats — some good at bats. So from the beginning, there’s a reason why he made the team, because we were pretty comfortable with him.”
PCL PROUD
There haven’t been many Mets that have come through Sacramento’s Sutter Health Park since the club moved it’s Triple-A affiliate to Syracuse in 2019, which makes Brandon Nimmo the last remaining player on the roster to have played for the Las Vegas 51s of the Pacific Coast League. The Mets were affiliated with the Triple-A team in Las Vegas from 2013-2019.
Griffin Canning and Reed Garrett previously pitched in Sacramento for other affiliates. Danny Young nearly did but he was designated for assignment with another affiliate prior to a Sacramento series.
