3 NY Mets prospects who could join Brett Baty on the 2023 Opening Day roster

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It’s almost a given now that Brett Baty will be on the 2023 New York Mets Opening Day roster. The clock on his service time has begun so unless he ends up struggling mightily while in the majors this year, he’s going to stick around.

He’ll probably have some company, too. The Mets have several prospects very close to major league ready. Which ones could we see join Baty for game number one to kick off the 2023 season?

1) NY Mets prospect Francisco Alvarez might be ready by Opening Day 2023

Will Francisco Alvarez be ready to catch in the major leagues when the 2023 season opens up? The Mets are going to need to know the answer before Opening Day.

The catching situation in Flushing isn’t timed perfectly. James McCann will have two more years under contract and backup Tomas Nido seems to be a near-perfect second-string backstop for the team. Pitchers love working with him but a tough decision may need to be made regarding him.

The Mets could always look to move McCann. Designating him for assignment doesn’t seem so likely but maybe a bad contract swap or sending him elsewhere while eating a large part of his contract could happen. However, it does set the Mets up with only Nido—an obvious backup—and their star rookie, Alvarez. Just because Alvarez is expected to grow into a big league hitter doesn’t mean he will. In fact, we shouldn’t expect him to be all that great when he first arrives.

One possibility for the Mets is to have Alvarez get regular at-bats as a DH in the major leagues. Pair him alongside Daniel Vogelbach regularly and maybe they can get a better picture of how ready he is for MLB action. On days when Vogelbach starts, Alvarez could even get some innings behind the plate.

Ideally, the Mets wouldn’t want to promote Alvarez until they’re sure he is ready. However, if they open the season with McCann and Nido around, they’re going to have to get rid of one of them eventually. Nido could also be a trade candidate as well. There is always a market for a quality backup catcher. Alvarez will need to finish the season in Triple-A strong and impress the Mets next spring in order to crack the Opening Day roster.

2) NY Mets prospect Eric Orze makes sense for next year’s bullpen

Eric Orze is already an option to see major league action this year although if he hasn’t been called up yet we might have to wait until next year. The Mets bullpen is one of the most mysterious for the 2023 season. They have a lot of free agents there. Orze will have an opportunity to impress Buck Showalter enough and win his way onto the roster.

Orze has not been highly-acclaimed in the Mets’ system but there’s a simple reason for that. Minor league relief pitchers simply don’t get much attention. He’s only on the radar now because this 2020 fifth-round draft pick sped through the minor leagues from High-A to Triple-A in 2021. This season at Syracuse hasn’t been so spectacular but that’s only when you look at his ERA. Orze has been a high-strikeout, low-walk pitcher. Who cares about an ERA on the farm when he’s doing so many other things well?

As a candidate to fill in at the back of the bullpen, Orze would be an affordable option for the Mets. Not that they’re looking to build the bullpen cheaply. But with all of his minor league options remaining, it would be a benefit to have him on the roster. The Mets began this year with far too many guys missing minor league options. Having even two or three of those roster spots can be helpful at managing freshness out of the bullpen.

3) NY Mets prospect Mark Vientos is either on the MLB roster or he’s traded this winter

There is no in-between for Mark Vientos. He is either on the Mets Opening Day roster next year or he’s with a different organization. There is no reason why he still needs to be in Triple-A other than the major league roster right now doesn’t have room for him.

It feels very 50/50 with Vientos. On one hand, why wasn’t he dealt at this year’s trade deadline if the Mets have no intention of moving forward with him? One possibility is the Mets didn’t get any deals together sweet enough that they felt Vientos was worth giving up. Plus, if they’re going to go after a blockbuster addition like Shohei Ohtani, they’re going to need a lot of ammunition.

Vientos has played a lot less third base this year and with Brett Baty getting the promotion over him to the major leagues, it’s clear who the organization prefers at the hot corner. Vientos is left in a J.D. Davis role for the immediate future. He could definitely be a DH option for them but with such limited defensive abilities the Mets are probably going to trade him.

Again, why haven’t they already?

Vientos could be a complimentary piece alongside Vogelbach instead of Alvarez to begin the year. At the trade deadline, he’s someone they could flip.

For Vientos, it’s all or nothing next year on Opening Day. He’ll begin the year with some major league team. None of us know if it’ll be the Mets or another club.

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