There are four spring training games left before the start of the regular season. If the Mets win today’s game, they will guarantee that they cannot end spring training with a losing record – not that it matters anyway.
Yesterday the Mets lost to the Yankees 5-3 in Tampa. Mark Vientos had the highlight of the game hitting an early two-run bomb. It was a team leading fifth home run of the spring. With the J.D. Martinez signing, the Vientos is no longer the starting DH for the ball club. Martinez may start the season in the minors to ramp up baseball activities, so there’s a chance Vientos is the Opening Day DH. His playing time in the coming days is something to keep an eye on.
With José Quintana on the hill this afternoon, there’s a lot of Opening Day rehearsal energy at the ballpark. We are so close to meaningful games!
Three Things To Watch For:
- José Quintana, Opening Day Starter. There’s a lot going on for Quintana right now! Quintana became an American citizen this week after passing his naturalization test in Miami. He talked about his experience with reporters including how one of his major concerns, after waiting half a year to get the appointment, was missing time in the regular season to travel to Miami to take the test. Focusing on today, Quintana has his final tune up before his big Opening Day start in Queens. Over four games this spring he has allowed nine runs, only six earned, in 13 innings while striking out 12 batters.
- Mark Vientos: Mark Vientos hit his fifth homer of spring in yesterday’s game. His spring has been punctuated with moments of power between small stretches where he has racked up strikeouts. He has 18 strikeouts over 54 at bats, but they are clumped. For example, six happened on back to back days. The result has been a low .250 OBP with a high .537 SLG. As spring winds down we are hoping he can work on increasing his OBP clip without sacrificing power.
- Jiman Choi: Choi can become a free agent tomorrow if the Mets do not add him to the 40-man roster. He is 6-for-35 this spring spread over 15 games. His OBP his 120 points higher than his batting average as he has also worked six walks this spring. Since the Martinez signing, it is more difficult, but not impossible, to see a path forward for Choi on the Mets roster.
Let’s Go Mets!
