3 NY Mets players who will be better in 2025, 2 who will be worse

Mark Vientos may come back down to earth in 2025 after breaking out in a big way in 2024.

Mark Vientos had a monster campaign in 2024, emerging as a potential future star in a season where he was thrusted into an everyday role thanks to his big-time hitting. In 2024, he clubbed 27 home runs in the regular season and five more in the postseason. Nobody believed Vientos would be such a huge factor in the Mets run last season, perhaps because of his struggles as a rookie and lack of direction at third base prior to last season.

Here is why though he may not reach the plateaus he set last year. He still struck out a lot, and he hit just .169 against breaking balls, compared to .329 against fastballs. With the Mets expected to be contenders this year and Vientos now a known commodity, opposing teams (if they're smart) will factor Vientos' lack of plate discipline and throw fewer fastballs against him, relying on him to get himself out.

Vientos still has more to prove at the plate. If he wants to be a big piece for the future, he will need to be a more complete hitter, which means hitting more curveballs and sliders and being a more disciplined hitter. I don't think that piece to his game is unlocked in 2025, denying him getting to the next level.