Brett Baty is in a similar spot as a former NY Mets player but that may only help him

What’s Brett Baty’s role on the 2025 New York Mets? The team has gone public to say he’ll be in the mix for opportunities at both corner infield spots. We know better than to fully entrust what the instruction manual says. This time last year the team was going to have a platoon of Mark Vientos and DJ Stewart at the DH spot. Then J.D. Martinez slithered in with a price tag they couldn’t resist.

Baty, as long as he isn’t traded, should indeed have some sort of an opportunity to contribute in 2025. It’ll be a big year for him in terms of establishing himself as a major league caliber player of some kind. He’s down to his final minor league option which means if he doesn’t cut the mustard this year he’s likely gone after.

It feels familiar. And with the way he handled himself at Amazin Day with nothing but smiles and sunshine, it’s beginning to feel a lot like Dominic Smith in 2019.

A part-time role worked for Dominic Smith in 2019 and might benefit Brett Baty in 2025

Two years of struggling at the plate in 2017 and 2018 had the Mets moving on from considering Smith to be their first baseman of the future. They had this young slugger named Pete Alonso ready to take over the spot. What did this mean for Smith?

It’s easy to forget that in 2019 the DH wasn’t even in the National League yet. The two would have to co-exist on the roster as first basemen. It’s not ideal. The Mets had already given Smith some time in left field and would allow him to continue to play the position regularly in 2019. Limited to 197 plate appearances partly because of injury in addition to seeing the bench a whole lot, Smith delivered with a .282/.355/.525 performance. Maybe there was some life in his bat after all.

The next year, in the shortened 60-game season, Smith played in 50 games and was even better. He slashed .316/.377/.616 with 21 doubles and 10 home runs. The outrageous numbers had him finish 13th in the MVP vote. Suddenly, the Mets had a good problem on their hands. Alonso was one of the best power hitters in the game. Smith was blooming a little later than expected.

Of course, the fun times didn’t last forever. Smith’s performance slid back down in 2021 while playing mostly left field. He’s an easily forgotten member of the 2022 team where he hit .194/.276/.284 without a single home run in 152 plate appearances. He was non-tendered at season’s end.

Baty, who received ample opportunity in 2023 and 2024, feels like he’s right around where Smith was entering 2019. Vientos is the Alonso in the situation. A position change, a more limited role, and a good front-facing attitude like Smith had in 2019 as the team’s cheerleader are all coming together. It can’t be easy to view yourself as the future third baseman of the franchise only to see a friend of yours take over the position. 

He’ll need more than a good attitude and some Mets history repeating itself in order to be a success even i it only lasts for a year or two. Embracing whatever role the team throws his way can’t hurt. We’ve seen it work before.