Ronny Mauricio and 3 others who could replace Daniel Vogelbach if the Mets DFA him

Let the speculation begin, or at least continue, for the future of Daniel Vogelbach. He didn’t play at all for the New York Mets over the weekend against the Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s obvious what’s next.

Vogelbach has been the one getting the finger pointed at him for weeks now. More than one finger, too. The inability to actually hit or play the field made him such an undesirable piece to the ball club. Assuming he’s gone before the Mets play their next game, it’s time to look at some replacements currently within the system.

1) The NY Mets can replace Daniel Vogelbach on the roster with Ronny Mauricio

How exciting! Also, very unlikely. Mauricio is learning new positions and the team has already promoted Brett Baty, Francisco Alvarez, and Mark Vientos to try and spark the offense. Only Alvarez has been playing well.

In theory, Mauricio is a terrific addition to the Mets roster as long as he performs at the plate. That’s a pretty huge “if.” At least he can play multiple positions (or at least he’s currently trying to add them to his resume). Mauricio also has some speed the Mets could use.

Mauricio has cooled off since his hot start. Still the owner of a .320/.360/.524 slash line and leading his league with 80 hits, it’s not an absolutely outrageous idea to go a completely different route with an entirely opposite sort of player than Vogelbach as his roster replacement. 

How likely is this to happen? There’s probably a better chance the Mets keep Vogelbach for another week than replace him on the roster with Mauricio.

Based on how the Mets have used several other players over the weekend, there’s another player that seems to be a bit more fitting.

2) The NY Mets can replace Daniel Vogelbach on the roster with Michael Perez

Catcher Michael Perez is ahead of Tomas Nido on the depth chart now. Nido survived waivers and accepted an assignment to Triple-A. Rather than restart the whole process all over again and recall him, the Mets might want to consider a promotion for Michael Perez.

There are some problems with carrying three catchers yet also benefits for the situation they’re in. Francisco Alvarez and Omar Narvaez can share the defensive duties with the other taking on the role of DH. Pair them up with particular pitchers or do whatever it takes to make sure, at the very least, Alvarez is in the lineup as much as possible. His bat is one of the few threats available.

Perez would take on the very traditional role of backup catcher. Because a DH cannot be moved to another position in a game, the Mets are running the risk of a catcher getting hurt and having to turn to whoever their emergency option is at the position. It’s probably Jeff McNeil. He plays everywhere. He has been the emergency catcher in the past.

A third catcher on the roster can be limiting, but think of it this way; the Mets are essentially swapping Vogelbach for Narvaez. We do need to see more from him before having faith that he should be more than Alvarez’s backup. It’s worth a shot.

3) The NY Mets can replace Daniel Vogelbach on the roster with Tyler White

The Mets would need to add Tyler White to their 40-man roster, but a DFA of Vogelbach would open up the spot for them to do so. A recent addition to the system, White does have major league experience. His lifetime .236/.315/.409 slash line from the majors came to its most recent end after the 2019 season. He has lingered in the minors ever since.

White would be as much of a direct replacement for Vogelbach as it gets. He’s a first baseman with some decent Triple-A power. He hammered 16 home runs last year on the farm while slashing .230/.357/.412. It’s actually close to the kind of slash line we’d expect out of Vogelbach.

One change from Vogelbach to White would be the side of the plate they swing from. White is a righty who in 98 at-bats this year on the farm has hit .255 with a .365 OBP. It’s not as thrilling as a promotion of Mauricio. It’s more practical than carrying a third catcher. 

The Syracuse roster does have Danny Mendick available as well, but he doesn’t have the power the Mets should be looking to add. There is one other player sitting there in Triple-A the Mets might want to think about adding to the 40-man roster and giving a shot in the majors.