3 opportunities the NY Mets missed on trying when the season was already over

In a lost season, the mission changes. The New York Mets immediately went into tryout mode after the trade deadline. This meant a reshaped roster of players trying to show the front office and coaches they were capable major leaguers worthy of getting penciled in for a spot on the 2027 team.

It was an oddly fun final two months and that’s maybe because the frustrating losses no longer mattered nearly as much. Sure, many weren’t locked into every pitch. The ones we did put down the phone to watch were more entertaining than a lot of what happened in the first half of the season.

Throughout this tryout period, the Mets experimented with a few changes. Some players got plenty of chances to prove themselves in a variety of roles. Then there were a few opportunities the Mets didn’t implement enough or at all.

We should have seen the Mets give these experiments a try more or at all

1) Brett Baty should have gotten a longer look at shortstop

The Mets waited until the penultimate game of the season to start Brett Baty at shortstop. They did so with a good thought in mind. They want the roster flexibility next year in not needing to have anyone else as their backup shortstop. But what would one game even tell them?

Baty should have been tested at shortstop much sooner if this was something the Mets had in mind. He made an error in his one and only game at the position. Is that enough to dismiss the idea completely? 

2) The Mets needed to test some other players at first base

Baty was one of several Mets to get a handful of starts at first base. They needed to do so with some others as well. Specifically, because Jared Young is a lefty hitter, the Mets would have done themselves a big favor trying out some of the righties.

Marcus Semien’s second base defense on the decline could have made him a candidate. Francisco Alvarez makes a lot of sense, too. Juan Soto isn’t moving from the outfield quite yet while everyone seems to completely believe he’ll end up as a regular first baseman before his days with the Mets are over with. The Mets’ greatest first base mistakes all took place in the offseason. They didn’t do nearly enough to try to find a solution, even fifth on next year’s depth chart. The positive spin: they’ll look outside of the organization.

3) Ronny Mauricio needed to face major league pitching in September

Hammering a couple of home runs in the final weekend of the season had fans wondering where Ronny Mauricio had been the last few weeks. He barely played this season and was left behind in Triple-A even as the Mets had an added roster spot. It seemed like a foregone conclusion that his time with the club had been completed.

It’s not as if the Mets were using every other roster spot appropriately. Christopher Morel and Cristian Pache occupied a pair of spots. As useful as they could be as minor league depth, neither strikes us as Opening Day roster contenders. Mauricio, on the other hand, remains one of those mysteries. Now on the verge of having to release, trade, or go into the 2027 blindly without enough of a clue as to what he can offer, Mauricio’s lack of playing time in a lost season leaves us with more questions than answers.

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