1 Mets player who could get less playing than than you think

Daniel Vogelbach quickly became a fan favorite after being acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates before the trade deadline last year. He won over New York Mets fans with his above-average bat and his plus-sized waist. Vogelbach will start the season as an everyday player at the DH spot vs right-handed pitchers. The question is will he finish the season as a starter?

Why Daniel Vogelbach might be replaced in the Mets starting lineup

Vogelbach made an impact with the Mets last year and projects to have an above-average offensive season once again in 2023. Most of his value with the bat is provided with on-base percentage as he is a very patient hitter. There is no doubt getting on base is valuable, but the Mets already have a lineup full of high-on-base percentage hitters. What they do not have is a lineup full of power hitters.

Even though Vogelbach is a big man he is not a big power hitter. His slugging percentage was just .433 last year and his career high is .439. The Mets had a great offense last year ranking 5th in runs per game. The one area that could use improvement is the power department. They ranked only 16th in home runs per game. The good thing is they have four prospects near major league ready who have great potential as power hitters.

Brett Baty is the first of these prospects and probably closest to being MLB-ready. Baty had a .544 SLG in Double-A last year. Baty could affect Vogelbach by either pushing Eduardo Escobar from 3B to part time DH or by taking DH at-bats from Vogelbach himself. Baty has some defensive question marks but the Mets may want to get his bat in the lineup somehow and that could come at the expense of Vogelbach.

Francisco Alvarez is maybe the most exciting option of them all. The Mets are going to do everything in their power to develop him as a catcher before they call him up to the majors but at some point, the needs of the MLB team will come first. If the Mets are having trouble offensively they may come calling for Alvarez. He has huge power potential and slugged .553 at Double-A last year. If the Mets are not comfortable with his defense at catcher they can get him in the lineup at DH.

Ronny Mauricio was not a consideration for the MLB team a couple of weeks ago. That is until he started tearing up Spring Training. Mauricio is a shortstop by trade but will not be playing there with the Mets. He is 6'3 and hit 26 HRs in Double-A last year. If you've seen some of the bombs he's hit recently you know he can hit the long ball.

To sum up, Vogelbach is a decent option at DH, but the Mets have more exciting and higher-upside players coming that can take at-bats away from him.