Brodie Van Wagenen didn’t win fans but he definitely influenced the direction of the New York Mets. In two years as the general manager, BVW was bold with his moves. Often, it was a little too drastic for the liking of fans.
His modus operandi was to trade prospects away almost to an unnecessary degree. Some of those trades have aged better than expected.
It doesn’t change the weirdness of Van Wagenen trying to promote how good Mark Vientos will be in the future by comparing him to Pete Alonso. Using only their age 22 seasons as a comparison, Van Wagenen is doing the opposite of what he did during his time with the Mets and hugging a prospect.
Former Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen is a big Mark Vientos fan
Is Vientos a future 50-home run guy? Hmm. I don’t think anyone expects that. We'd take 25-30 bombs a season.
Van Wagenen is getting a bit choosy with this comparison. As many pointed out to him, if we take Alonso’s 2018 season, Vientos is no match for the pure power. Only statistics which make Vientos look comparable were included. It’s an unusual tweet for him to put out. Van Wagenen isn’t Marcus Stroman when it comes to Twitter—seeing and reacting to everything on there.
Roc Nation is where Van Wagenen works and they represent Vientos. It’s not unusual for agents to pump up their prospects early on. This only feels a little funny because we know that if Van Wagenen stuck around long enough in Queens he would have traded Vientos for a relief pitcher rental.
Van Wagenen’s comparison isn’t unfair. It may even have the current Mets regime wondering a little more about exactly where Vientos fits into their plans. Appearing to be a man with no real position to play in the coming year, Vientos is an obvious right-handed DH candidate who could also be an option at third base or left field. First base could always come calling, too. Alonso is not invincible.
This season could be a final stand for Vientos with the Mets. Does a spot open up for him somewhere or does the team begin to conceive a plan on where to trade him?