3 red flags from Mets spring training worth some concern

2) Mark Vientos has been his usual self and the alternatives aren’t great either

Someone whose statistics should matter this spring to some degree, Mark Vientos has been his usual self. He can launch a home run every once in a while. Far too often, he’s striking out. This is an acceptable outcome if the home runs are more plentiful and the batting average isn’t chasing the .200 mark.

Vientos leads the team with 4 home runs but it has come with a .204 batting average and 16 strikeouts. Once again, he’s powerful yet incapable of putting the ball in play enough.

As bad as Vientos has been, the real red flag comes into the frame when we look at the alternatives. Both at the DH spot and for someone who could play third base, there isn’t much.

The Mets did attempt to bolster their DH depth this offseason with minor league signings of Ji-Man Choi and Luke Voit. The former has a chance to make the club with the latter doing everything in his power to guarantee a minor league assignment. Choi has been much less impressive over the last few games. All of a sudden, with a .194 batting average, picking him to make the club seems like a reach.

The planned use of the DH spot originally seemed to have the Mets turning to Vientos for the bulk of starts, DJ Stewart for some others, and utilizing it as an opportunity for right fielder Starling Marte to receive some extra rest while keeping his bat in the lineup. Outside of signing J.D. Martinez, the Mets plan will begin the year with a bunch of dirt on its chin.