3 A.J. Ewing thoughts after the NY Mets rookie shines in MLB debut

In desperate need of taking some action, the New York Mets turned away from the current track and decided to go more youthful in center field. A.J. Ewing was awarded a chance to not be the savior but provide some sort of spark in the lineup.

Hitting way down in the number 8 spot, Ewing drew 3 walks, drove in a pair, scored twice, and tripled for his first MLB hit.

It’s one game and that’s only half as many times as a broken clock is right each day. David Stearns has missed plenty during his Mets tenure and yet this one already feels good. What can we take away from one 8.5 inning performance?

The three big takeaways from A.J. Ewing after one game

1) A.J. Ewing is already the pest we want him to be

On top of the other things he did, Ewing stole a base. Since going pro, he has 102 in 252 games. That includes 17 in 32 minor league games this year. The majority came last season when he swiped 70. This ability to draw walks is going to make pitchers and catchers nervous. He can fly between bases and create havoc without swinging a bat.

2) Is A.J. Ewing a more well-rounded version of early Brandon Nimmo?

We’re going to connect Ewing to a lot of different players. Jett Williams is one of them as the two were often compared while in the Mets system. Brandon Nimmo is the other because Ewing now wears his number 9. Nimmo evolved into more of a power-hitter while in his early days he was an OBP machine that didn’t really run a whole lot. It took Nimmo until 2024 to reach 10 stolen bases. For a guy who regularly had an OBP in the high .300s and even into the .400s, it was sometimes a “so what?” because walks never turned into doubles. Add in Ewing’s defensive abilities in center field already, the bucket of things Ewing does well early on vs. Nimmo isn’t so even.

3) Give it a week and maybe A.J. Ewing should leadoff for the Mets

The Mets have a strange leadoff hitter problem, not because anyone is disagreeing over politics or anything. They just don’t have a natural player for the spot. Carson Benge batted first in Ewing’s debut, but he’ll suit them better in the middle of the order. Ewing’s spot at the top is useful just as Benge’s higher power potential can help the Mets out in the middle. None of the injured players are on their way back. If Ewing stays hot, batting him first isn’t so crazy. Ewing-Bo Bichette-Juan Soto-Mark Vientos-Benge splits the righties and lefties and sets them up better than maybe having Ewing hit so low. Again, let’s give it a week before changing a thing.

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