Ronny

Mauricio

It’s way too early to draw any firm conclusions, but the social media chatter hasn’t been overly positive as Bichette transitions to the hot corner in his Mets debut. His defense will be picked apart throughout spring training but there are few reservations from an offensive standpoint, which is the primary concern for fantasy managers. New York has already confirmed that he won’t take over at shortstop temporarily while Francisco Lindor recovers from a hamate injury. The other notable developments here are fellow offseason acquisition Marcus Semien in the leadoff spot with Juan Soto heading over to left field. Here is the full lineup: Semien (2B), Soto (LF), Bichette (3B), Tyrone Taylor (CF), Ronny Mauricio (SS), MJ Melendez (RF), Austin Barnes (C), Jose Rojas (1B) and Chris Suero (DH).

Robert has been largely ineffective the last two years and has quite the injury history, but he’s 28, he’s a legit center fielder and he has a career 111 OPS+. This is definitely worth a shot for the Mets, who will be responsible for paying $22 million for one year or $40 million for two. They’ll presumably handle him better than a White Sox organization that mostly expected position players to play through injury. Tyrone Taylor had topped the Mets’ depth chart in center, but now he’ll serve as the fourth outfielder he’s meant to be. He’ll presumably be on the short side of a platoon with Brett Baty in left initially, assuming the Carson Benge now starts off in Triple-A. With Acuña, who was out of options, departing, Ronny Mauricio seems poised for a utility role.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said earlier this offseason that Brett Baty would get the majority of playing time at third base in 2026, but it’s noteworthy that Mauricio is being used exclusively at third in the winter leagues. He’s a player who has played shortstop, second base, and outfield as well, so the Mets may be looking to position him as the primary competition for Baty at third base.

New York’s infield mix got a bit more crowded when they acquired veteran second baseman Marcus Semien in a trade with the Rangers last month. Baty split time across several spots last year, making 87 appearances at the hot corner and 57 at the keystone. It sounds like he’ll get the nod over other in-house alternatives like Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuña at third base heading into camp after hitting .291 with nine homers and 30 RBI in 55 games after the All-Star break to close last season.

New York will be without their primary third baseman for a pivotal showdown against Miami that carries plenty of playoff implications. It’ll be top prospect Ronny Mauricio stepping into the spotlight at the hot corner in this one. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza expressed concern late Friday that Baty could be done for the season. There should be some clarity on his status this weekend once he undergoes additional evaluation and imaging to determine the severity of the issue.

Baty will undergo additional imaging this weekend to determine the severity of a possible oblique issue that cropped up during Friday’s game against the Marlins. Even a mild strain would likely require a couple weeks to rest and fully recover. The 25-year-old’s absence would likely result in more prominent roles for Ronny Mauricio and Luisangel Acuña during the postseason, should New York make it.

There’s been no indication that Nimmo is in danger of landing on the injured list, but he’s going to sit out his fourth consecutive game on Sunday afternoon. It’ll be Jeff McNeil heading out to left field on the heels of Saturday’s two-homer effort with Brett Baty covering second base and Ronny Mauricio getting into the lineup at the hot corner.

It was a two-run shot off Jake Irvin. Vientos had been 4-for-26 with one RBI and no walks this month before going 2-for-4 with a homer on Sunday. It seemed like his playing time was set to dwindle with Brett Baty outperforming him of late, but now the Mets figure to keep him in the lineup and see if this turns into a legitimate hot streak. That’s bad news for Ronny Mauricio, who was out of the lineup for a second straight game tonight.

Vientos will sit again, and hasn’t played since Saturday. The 25-year-old begins another game on the bench with Brett Baty hitting eighth while playing third base, and Ronny Mauricio lined up as the designated hitter and hitting seventh.

There doesn’t appear to be anything wrong physically with the 25-year-old slugger, it’s just a routine day of rest. Ronny Mauricio will start in his place at the hot corner and will bat eighth for the Mets against Brewers’ right-hander Brandon Woodruff.