1 NY Mets player ready to fool the team into giving him an Opening Day roster spot

MJ Melendez comes into New York Mets camp with a decent shot at making the team even without an injury. He’s one of their outfield candidates who could cover right field temporarily in a world where Carson Benge isn’t on the Opening Day roster. Signed to a split contract which’ll have him more easily passable through the waiver wire, he’s a low-risk flier the team was apparently willing to make even if he doesn’t fit the scheme of what their original offseason mission was.

Melendez is a terrible defender, below-average hitter, and probably a guy who’d fit best in Triple-A. He brings experience, a great arm, and some power to the field. We can understand why, as a depth piece, he can work.

Carlos Mendoza spoke about Melendez quite glowingly, suggesting how he could fool the team with a hot spring.

“I think there’s more in the tank. He’s coming off a couple of down years, but I remember when he first came into the league he was a pretty good player -- he’s going to get an opportunity here.”

MJ Melendez is about to rake in spring training and win a Mets roster spot, isn’t he?

The thing about Mendoza’s quote that really stands out is the “couple of down years.” Nitpicking a bit, he has only played in parts of four seasons. He hit .083 last year. If Mendoza is referring to his unsatisfying 2024 season, it wasn’t even all that much worse than what he did in the two previous seasons.

Melendez is a unique player with a catcher background which comes in handy in games when the Mets might want to DH Francisco Alvarez. He can help them get through any short-term injuries when they don’t want to place a catcher on the IL. As an outfielder or hitter, it’s a lot of miss.

A lifetime .215/.297/.388 hitter at the major league level with 19 home runs and 163 strikeouts per 162 games, it sounds like Mendoza is buying too much into the upside of the dozen or so at-bats when he can go deep. He won’t get nearly the same amount of playing time with the Mets as he had in his early years with the Kansas City Royals. We can expect far less playing time in New York.

Making the Opening Day roster isn’t catastrophic because anyone Melendez would beat out for a roster spot is either going to stay within the organization (Benge, Ronny Mauricio, etc.) or is replaceable enough like Vidal Brujan. The Mets have been fooled plenty before with the redundant duo of Zack Short and Joey Wendle from 2024.

Melendez fits the Mets best as an Opening Day platoon option alongside someone like Tyrone Taylor in right field or an altogether replacement for Brujan if the team can view Brett Baty as more of a utility man. He’s a bit more proven than Jared Young, but right there alongside him in terms of the role each will play. Despite continued desire for strong defensive players, the Mets haven’t been avoidant of players like Melendez. But unlike position changes for players like Bo Bichette and Jorge Polanco, the Mets know what they’ll get out of Melendez.

The recent minor league signing of Mike Tauchman will add some competition for Melendez. But with him [Melendez] on a guaranteed deal and Tauchman not, it might be less about who's better and more in regards to whose contract structure fits.