Mets opt for second base flexibility over José Iglesias' return
Will fluidity at second base be a good thing for the Mets in 2025? Plus, Alonso is officially back, Smith returns, Stearns speaks and workouts officially begin...
What’s up with the Mets? 🍎
The Mets officially signed 1B Pete Alonso to a two-year, $54 million contract with a player opt-out after the 2025 season (release)
The team also signed RHP Drew Smith to a one-year deal with a club option for the 2026 season - he will start the season on the 60-day injured list
President of baseball operations David Stearns has seemingly shut the door on a Jose Iglesias reunion, instead opting for roster flexibility and giving younger players a chance
Roster Moves 📰
RHP Drew Smith (Tommy John Surgery) placed on 60-Day IL
RHP Christian Scott (Tommy John Surgery) placed on 60-Day IL
Spring workouts Day 1 highlights 🏋️♀️
Spring training officially opened up on Wednesday with pitchers and catchers taking part in official workouts for the first time in Port St. Lucie.
It was a busy day for the Mets, and here are some of the highlights:
RHP Clay Holmes threw a live batting practice, reaching three up-downs (three simulated innings with breaks in-between) on Day 1. It was an impressive outing from Holmes, who looked strong and he’s well ahead of schedule compared to most other pitchers already
In the surprise of the day, INF Ronny Mauricio was seen in the batter’s box for some live BP against Holmes. Mauricio still isn’t expected to play in any games until mid-March as he continues his recovery from December, 2023 ACL surgery
3B Mark Vientos arrived to camp early and looked to be in incredible physical condition already. Vientos has spent the offseason working on his craft at third base and is looking to build off the stellar breakout year he enjoyed in 2024
C Francisco Alvarez and OF Jesse Winker were among those taking batting practice for the Mets on Wednesday, while INF Jett Williams was seen taking reps at both second and third base
Rumor Mill 💨
The Tigers made a six-year, $171.5 million offer for free agent 3B Alex Bregman before he signed with Boston on Wednesday night (Detroit Free-Press)
What David Stearns said on Wednesday in Port St. Lucie… 🗣️
Pete Alonso’s return, and how they were able to get the deal done
Both parties were motivated to get a deal done, and they’re thrilled to have Alonso back
They wanted to ensure Alonso knew they wanted him back, and vice versa. It was important for both sides to hear that at the time they met face-to-face in Tampa last week
When they signed Jesse Winker, they felt there was a real possibility Alonso could sign elsewhere
He feels Alonso is motivated - he wants to win a World Series as a Met, he wants to demonstrate he is the player he was before 2023
Alonso has had good years recently, but not the years like he’s had in the past - he feels Alonso is motivated to return to the level he was before 2023
“He makes us a better team. There’s no question he makes us a better team. We’re in a spot where we feel like we’ve got a really good team. We’re tying to win as many games as possible. Pete makes us better.”
On the NL East, league competition
The division is strong - they have a lot of respect for the Braves and Phillies
They believe they can be better than both the Braves and Phillies, but all three teams have their work cut out for them if they want to win the division
He believes the Braves will definitely win more games than they did last year, given how injured their roster was in 2024
They’re not ignoring the Dodgers - their primary focus is on themselves and how they can continue to improve organizationally so they can have the kind of sustained success the Dodgers have
On the possibility of re-signing José Iglesias
The club wants to maintain flexibility in that roster spot, and keep opportunities open for their younger players
He doesn’t want to freeze the roster at so many positions - they felt they got away with that to an extent in 2024
Where they are in the free agent market right now
The club is remaining opportunistic and will do so throughout the course of the season to continue to improve the roster, but they’re most likely finished with the major free agent market at this time
On Steve Cohen
He is very invested in making sure players know they want them and make a connection with them in free agent negotiations
Feels Steve and Alex Cohen’s desire to put a personal touch on the organization is beneficial for the team
He likes working for the Cohens - they care deeply about the organization, and has proven he will provide all the necessary resources to field the best team possible
On the perception they don’t want to sign pitchers to long-term deal
They have approached pitchers on long-term deals - they have philosophies but don’t have lines in the sand
When there are players who are worth the long-term investment, they will pursue them
Will having fluidity at second base be a good thing for the Mets? ✍️
On what was a busy first official day of spring training camp on Wednesday, president of baseball operations David Stearns spoke to reporters in Port St. Lucie (see above for a full summary).
Stearns covered a lot of different topics and a lot of ground, but arguably the biggest nugget to emerge was the fact that a return for José Iglesias is unlikely.
Instead, Stearns spoke about his desire to keep “some avenues open” for some of the franchise’s younger players, while also retaining roster flexibility at second base.
There is a lot to unpack from what Stearns said.
First off, I still think it is a mistake not bringing Iglesias back. He offered consistent offensive production from second base, as well as game-changing defensive work. And then there were the countless intangibles that Iglesias brought to the table that can’t be underestimated. He was an important glue guy in that locker room, and that isn’t nothing.
Now, you could argue that Iglesias just ran into some magic in 2024 and a repeat performance in 2025 was hardly guaranteed. That’s fair. Also true is the fact that Iglesias is 35 years old and regression should be expected at this point, especially after an extraordinary season in 2024.
Plus, Stearns has earned our trust.
However, it will be interesting to see how the front office and the coaching staff handle second base throughout the year, and if having fluidity at the position proves to be a good thing or not.
Competition is always a good thing and it may well be that one of Jeff McNeil, Luisangel Acuña, Brett Baty, and later, Ronny Mauricio rises to the challenge, puts together a really impressive spring, and one of them wins the job full-time.
But it is more likely that second base becomes a platoon or a musical chairs situation once again, and whoever mans second on Opening Day won’t necessarily be the full-time second baseman for the rest of the year, or in Game Two for that matter. It could be that second base remains an open competition between two or three players for the entire year, or maybe it becomes a full-time platoon between McNeil and Acuña.
Should McNeil struggle as he did during the first half of the 2024 season, that could open up the possibility for Acuña, Baty, and Mauricio to all get reps at second base and prove they can produce at the big league level on a consistent basis.
However you slice it, it does seem that Stearns and the Mets are committed to using second base as a way to ensure some of their younger players get regular playing time throughout 2025. He has said pretty much since he arrived that he wants to keep playing opportunities open for their prospects, and said specifically on Wednesday that he does not want to lock the roster down at too many positions, akin to what the Phillies have done recently, which limited their roster flexibility this winter.
But of course, the Mets are not the Phillies, nor is the reverse true. Whether that proves to be a sound strategy for the Mets specifically remains to be seen.
After all, it is important to have stability across the infield, in addition to having proven commodities at each spot. We still don’t know what to truly expect from their young prospects. Mauricio won’t even be a real consideration until mid-year - he isn’t even going to appear in a spring game until mid-March at the earliest, all but ruling him out for the Opening Day roster right out of the gate. Baty, who has struggled on both sides of the ball over parts of the last three seasons. And while Acuña excelled in a small sample last September, it was in fact a small sample, and the Mets really need to see more of him.
Again, roster flexibility is important, and the Mets do need to figure out a way to get their slew of young position players into the lineup one way or another. But with this team looked at as a legit contender, it will be interesting to see how the second base experiment plays out over time, and what their philosophy is there as the season evolves.
We will see how it all shakes out and if, ultimately, the decision not to bring back Iglesias and instead effectively opt for a year-long open competition at second base proves to be a shrewd move.
Around the League 🚩
The Red Sox signed free agent 3B Alex Bregman to a three-year, $120 million contract with two opt-outs (The Athletic)
The Padres signed RHP Nick Pivetta to a four-year, $55 million contract that includes a pair of opt-outs (ESPN)
The Brewers announced that they have signed LHP Tyler Alexander to a one-year deal
Angels INF Anthony Rendon suffered another injury setback and will miss a significant amount of time after undergoing hip surgery
The Marlins reached agreement with RHP Cal Quantrill on a one-year Major League contract (ESPN)
Former Met Daniel Vogelbach has been hired by the Pirates as a special assistant to the hitting department (Pittsburgh Post Gazette)
Good piece. Only quibble is the statement about baty "having trouble on both sides of the ball". I saw him make a good number of difficult plays. I think he's not a bad third baseman.
2024 is over, and welcome 2025. There is no guarantee with an older player that they will be as productive as they were the year before. If he is not signed elsewhere I would offer him a position coaching somewhere in the organization.