When Eduardo Escobar returns to Mets, Brett Baty could be sent down
The Mets' Brett Baty is tagged out at home plate by Yankees catcher Kyle Higashioka during the fifth inning on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. Credit: AP/Frank Franklin II
Eduardo Escobar appeared in his first and maybe only minor-league rehabilitation game Thursday, testing his strained left oblique by playing seven innings with High-A Brooklyn — at shortstop, of all positions, underscoring the imminent roster decision facing the Mets.
Who will they remove from the roster upon the return of Escobar, who opened the year as the regular third baseman but had lost much of his playing time before he got hurt?
They have two primary choices:
1) Cut utility infielder Yolmer Sanchez, leaving Brett Baty and Escobar to split time at third and Escobar as the backup at shortstop/second.
2) Send Baty back to Triple-A Syracuse, leaving Escobar as the primary third baseman and Sanchez as the backup across the infield.
“We haven’t gotten that far,” manager Buck Showalter said Thursday. “Obviously [Escobar will] come back and play some third base for us, but we also want to take this opportunity for him to play some other positions, which might help our roster management as we go forward.”
Showalter added that Escobar playing shortstop for Brooklyn was less about testing his ability to do so — Showalter has said repeatedly that he believes Escobar can — and more about letting him readjust to the position. Escobar has totaled two innings there in the past four seasons.
Since debuting to significant hype last week — and hitting a home run in Atlanta on his first swing in the majors — Baty, the Mets’ No. 2 prospect, has struggled in a way that was perhaps not unexpected for a 22-year-old who had played only a handful of games in Triple-A. He entered the series against the Rockies hitting .148 (4-for-27) with a .233 OBP and .259 slugging percentage in eight games.
No matter his near-term roster fate, Baty is regarded as Mets’ third baseman of the future.
“He’ll always be in the mix, whether he’s here or Syracuse,” Showalter said.
As he prepared for his first home game, Baty said Thursday afternoon that he took a moment to observe his surroundings on the field. His experience at Citi Field, which generally is considered pitcher-friendly, had been limited to a round of batting practice after he was drafted in 2019.
“[Older teammates] did say it plays a little bit deeper, especially right-center plays really big,” Baty said. “But I’m just going to go out there and try to hit the ball hard. I don’t really care where it goes.”
Carrasco speeds up
Carlos Carrasco’s comeback from a strained left oblique has continued smoothly, he said, and he plans to return during the series against the Nationals next weekend (Sept. 2-4). That would be a few days ahead of the front end of the Mets’ initial timetable of 3-4 weeks.
After throwing his first bullpen session Tuesday at Yankee Stadium, Carrasco is due for another likely Friday and then a longer one next week. He thinks he can skip a rehab assignment.
Iron men
Pete Alonso and Francisco Lindor remain the Mets’ leaders in games played, each getting their 125th start (of a possible 126) Thursday against Colorado.
Showalter didn’t sound as if he planned on giving them time off, either.
“To do that, you have to be very disciplined off the field and before games, and they both are. They’re very in tune with what they have to do to be ready to play every day,” Showalter said, adding later, “Some guys at 95% are better than somebody else at 100%.”
Personnel news
Of the several players the Mets recently designated for assignment, two cleared waivers and were sent back to Syracuse: lefthanders Nate Fisher (the former bank worker) and Sam Clay.
Rob Zastryzny, also a lefty, was claimed off waivers by the Angels.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
