Mets ‘not too concerned’ after being forced to scratch young third baseman

The New York Mets and injuries have seemingly gone hand in hand during the 2024 campaign. The injury bug seemingly deals the blue and orange another blow every couple of days. On Sunday, their young third baseman was injured and had to be scratched from the lineup.

Mark Vientos’ was scratched from the lineup

Before Sunday’s series finale against the Seattle Mariners, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reported that the Mets had to scratch third baseman Mark Vientos from the lineup due to left ankle soreness.

With the late lineup movement, the blue and orange had to do some shifting, with Jeff McNeil moving from right field to second base while Jose Iglesias slid over to the hot corner and Ben Gamel came off the bench. The trio went a combined two-for-10 in the contest, with a solo shot from McNeil scoring the squad’s lone run.

Since taking over the starting role, Vientos has been a revelation at third base this season. Through 70 games, the 24-year-old is slashing .270/.324/.536 with 17 home runs and 44 RBI.

The Mets are “not too concerned” about the injury

Following the Mets’ 12-1 defeat at the hands of the Mariners, first-year manager Carlos Mendoza revealed the organization isn’t too concerned about Vientos’ injury.

“He’s ok,” Mendoza said. “He was sore. That was why we took him out of the game. I just talked to him. Feeling a lot better. Off day tomorrow and see what we’ve got on Tuesday. But as of right now, we’re not too concerned.”

Who would replace Vientos?

If Vientos’ ankle continues to act up, Iglesias will likely take over the hot corner in the short term. However, if the 24-year-old does end up needing to be out for a long stretch, the blue and orange would likely call up Brett Baty from Triple-A. Baty began the year as the club’s starting third baseman but hasn’t appeared in a big league game since June 9.

The Texas native has been putting up stellar numbers in Triple-A Syracuse, slashing .254/.350/.503 with a .853 OPS across 50 games while clubbing 13 home runs and driving in 38 RBIs. Time will tell if Baty needs to be called up to replace an injured Vientos, but it is a situation to monitor over the coming days.