New York Mets: How to handle the infield logjam
The New York Mets addition of Jed Lowrie brings infield depth to an infield that was already pretty deep, which begs the question: what are they going to do with all these players?
You might not know this (because nobody ever talks about it,) but New York Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen used to be a player agent.
In fact, some of the players he represented still play in the league. If you’re curious about which ones I suggest you take a look around the Mets infield, which just added another ex-Brodie client to the ranks by signing veteran second baseman Jed Lowrie to a 2-year deal.
It’s not super likely that Lowrie, Robinson Cano and Todd Frazier will make a habit of talking about how their old agent is their new boss while taking infield warmups next season. It’s not even super likely that we’ll see them all out on the field at the same time.
Lowrie is joining what was already an embarrassment of infield riches, and it’s not entirely clear how the Mets plan to use all of the talents they’ve acquired. Is the intention here to have a ton of infield depth? Or, is this the first step in what will be another big trade by Van Wagenen?
These are answers that only the Mets front office really knows for sure (though it’s possible they don’t have any idea either), but there is enough info out there for some well-supported speculation. Let’s take a look at how the Mets might put this puzzle together.
Jed Lowrie
Jed Lowrie’s last two years have been confounding. For most of his career, Lowrie has appeared to be a decent second baseman whose value was offset by frequent injuries. As of late, he’s liked like an entirely different guy.
Because Lowrie played in a small market and isn’t particularly flashy you might not realize just how good he’s been in recent years. The only second basemen who rank above Lowrie in fWAR over the past two seasons are Jose Ramirez and Jose Altuve, and he’s also in the top five for UZR over the same time period.
All of this makes Lowrie a great get for the Mets, but how will he fit into the roster as it’s currently constructed?
Out of the infielders the Mets have on their depth chart right now Lowrie is probably the one most proven in a “utility” role, so it’s likely we’ll see him move around quite a bit, at least at the beginning of the season.
If Todd Frazier isn’t able to bounce back after a so-so 2018 it’s possible that Lowrie becomes the everyday third baseman. He has more experience playing down the middle, but Robinson Cano, at least for now, seems to be the team’s set second baseman.
Robinson Cano
Robinson Cano really wants to play second base, and for now it looks like that’s where the New York Mets will put him. Cano is getting older, so when the Mets acquired him some fans were worried about how he might handle fielding the position at the age of 36.
Weirdly, the defensive metrics show that there isn’t a ton to be worried about. For the past three years Cano has averaged a 2.27 UZR at second, and his lowest defensive value rating since joining the Mariners is only a -0.1, the only negative of his tenure there.
So, it’s actually pretty likely that we see Cano stick around as the everyday second baseman. How long that goes on for the remaining four years after his contract after 2019 is another story, but for now it looks like things should be fine.
Although, depending on how the Mets feel about their options at first, Cano could end up there at some point as well.
Todd Frazier
It’s pretty likely that Todd Frazier starts the season as the New York Mets everyday third baseman, but it’s certainly a job he’ll have to work to keep. Prior to Lowrie’s addition to the team Jeff McNeil was the only player who had a real shot of taking Frazier’s job, but now there’s some serious competition.
How Frazier performs this year is really a toss-up. As was mentioned earlier Todd’s 2018 wasn’t exactly what the Mets had hoped for, but that doesn’t mean that he should be totally discounted/tossed aside.
Injuries plagued Frazier last season, and he had his lowest number of at-bats since his rookie year, which certainly diminished his output.
Next year Steamer projects him to finish the year with a respectable 100 WRC+. He’s only a couple of years removed from his 40 HR season in 2016 with the White Sox; there’s no guarantee that we’ll see that power return, but it’s certainly not out of the question.
With those offensive numbers, Frazier would be a fine option for third base, though if Peter Alonso doesn’t pan out at first it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him moved there, opening up third for Lowrie. If his offense doesn’t rebound he’ll likely be relegated to the bench, and serve in some sort of utility role a la 2016 Wilmer Flores.
Amed Rosario
Amed Rosario probably won’t be super effected by the New York Mets new additions. Cano and Lowrie are great defenders at second, but neither has the range, especially at this stage in their career, to step in at short; seeing McNeil or Frazier at the position is even more unlikely.
Even if these players did have the skillset to play short Rosario would likely still be safe. He showed a ton of improvement last year, and his numbers in August and September blew away his work from earlier in the season, and his second half of the season’s OBP was more than 80 points higher than the first half.
On top of this Rosario was able to curb his strikeout problem, and his K% fell by 8 points from 2017. Anyway, you get the picture. Everything is moving the right way for him, and there’s no clear challenger at this point.
Jeff McNeil
Last year, Jeff McNeil came out of nowhere to become one of the New York Mets most consistent bats after his July call up. At seasons end, he seemed the shoe-in for next year’s starting second base job.
And then, the Cano deal happened. Not only did Cano take the spot that McNeil was likely going to play, he almost got him sent to Seattle! For now, it looks like McNeil is safe from any trades in the near future, but his new place in the line up is much less clear.
Mets manager Mickey Callaway says that he plans to use McNeil in a “Ben Zobrist” role, which means he might be expected to play just about anywhere, including the outfield.
McNeil has only played in the outfield twice in his professional career, putting in a pretty uneventful 17 innings in left for the Mets AAA affiliate. He’s certainly athletic enough to play a corner outfield spot, so it’d be up to him (and the Mets) to make sure he was comfortable making plays out there.
If someone in the infield does get injured McNeil is likely first in line to take their spot, especially at second or third.
Peter Alonso
Peter Alonso is the last big piece of the New York Mets infield puzzle, and he’s also the one who faces the most uncertainty. Earlier in the offseason, Van Wagenen said that he wants Alonso to be the team’s opening day first baseman, but that was before the Lowrie and Cano moves.
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Even if Alonso doesn’t get the starting job he’ll surely be brought up to the majors early in the season, and he has the kind of bat that can make an impact. In 301 plate appearances at AAA Las Vegas Alonso slashed .260/.355/.585 and hit 21 home runs.
He further dazzled in the Arizona Fall League, smashing a 103 MPH fastball into the seats in impressive fashion. Alonso hasn’t faced major league pitching yet, and it’s possible (even likely at first) that he’ll have trouble with more advanced stuff, but all signs are promising.
The big question with Alonso is his defense. He’s not the most nimble guy, which isn’t a huge problem at first base, but his defensive performance last year was enough to stop him from being promoted (though it’s very possible that service time consideration had at least something to do with it).
Next. Scouting the Mets-Indians trade. dark
Alonso’s case is pretty simple. If he can be an even passible defender while bringing the power he’s shown in the minors to the majors he’ll be an everyday starter at first, which is bad news for Todd Frazier. If his defense doesn’t work out he’ll likely still stick around the big league club as a pinch hitter, but there aren’t many other places on the field to put him.