The Mets optioned Baty to Triple-A Syracuse on Friday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Baty is slashing just .225/.304/.325 this season and has struck out at 34.7 percent clip in May. With the emergence of Mark Vientos (.295/.354/.591), the Mets have elected to send Baty back to the minors in hopes of getting his swing right. Vientos will take over as the club's everyday third baseman.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Heading to bench Wednesday
Rotowire
Baty is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.
Baty was in the lineup for three of the last four games with the Mets facing four right-handed starting pitchers, but he'll give way to the righty-hitting Mark Vientos on Wednesday while southpaw James Paxton takes the hill for the Dodgers. Vientos should continue to regularly replace the lefty-hitting Baty when the Mets face lefties, but the distribution of starts at third base between the two against right-handed pitching still looks to be up in the air. Baty has helped his cause by getting on base five times in 12 plate appearances over his last three starts, but Vientos owns a 1.085 OPS since his May 15 call-up from Triple-A Syracuse to keep himself in the mix for starts against righties.
Baty went 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run in Saturday's 7-2 extra-inning loss to the Giants.
Getting the start at third base and batting eighth, Baty put the Mets ahead 2-1 by taking Sean Hjelle deep in the seventh inning, but Edwin Diaz and the bullpen melted down once again. Baty snapped a 14-game homer drought with the blast, a stretch in which he's stumbled to a .122/.182/.146 slash line with a 42.2 percent strikeout rate while seeing Mark Vientos move past him on the depth chart at third base. While Baty's long ball was encouraging, he also struck out twice more Saturday. Until he solves his contact issues, he'll have a hard time reclaiming the starting job at the hot corner.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Sitting against right-hander again
Rotowire
Baty is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Guardians, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
The lefty-hitting Baty is on the bench against a right-handed starting pitcher (Triston McKenzie), likely signaling that he's at least temporarily lost hold of his role as the Mets' preferred third baseman. Though he's drawn positive reviews for his work defensively this season, Baty has failed to take a notable step forward at the plate, as he's posted a .611 OPS through 150 plate appearances. Baty has performed especially poorly over the past three weeks, going just 5-for-40 with 19 strikeouts against three walks across a stretch of 13 games. Mark Vientos looks like he'll get an extended look at the hot corner as the Mets look to bolster their slumping offense.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Starting spot in jeopardy
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Baty appears to be at risk of losing his starting job at third base to Mark Vientos, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.
Since slugging two home runs in a May 3 loss to the Rays, Baty is slashing an anemic .125/.186/.150 with a 43.2 percent strikeout rate. Vientos has mainly been used as a short-side platoon option since his most recent promotion, but he's gone 4-for-14 with two doubles in four games. Baty hasn't let his struggles affect his defense, and his reliable glove may be the only thing keeping him in the starting nine at the moment. With the Mets scrambling to find offense, though, they might decide they can live with Vientos' inferior glove at the hot corner if he can produce at the plate.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Not in Tuesday's lineup
Rotowire
Baty is not in the lineup for Tuesday's contest in Cleveland.
The Mets had been using a strict platoon at third base since Mark Vientos was recalled, but it will be Vientos getting the start at third base in this one against right-hander Xzavion Curry. Baty is hitting just .125/.186/.150 with a 43.2 percent strikeout rate since his two-homer game back on May 3 and could be losing his grip on a starting job.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Not starting versus lefty
Rotowire
Baty isn't in the Mets' lineup Saturday versus the Marlins.
With left-hander Braxton Garrett set to take the mound for Miami, the lefty-hitting Baty will step out of the lineup in favor of Mark Vientos, who will start at third and bat fifth.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Sitting against lefty
Rotowire
Baty is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.
With a tough lefty (Ranger Suarez) on the hill for Philadelphia, the lefty-hitting Baty will retreat to the bench. The freshly recalled Mark Vientos will get the start at third base and could end up filling the short side of a platoon with Baty while he's up with the big club.
Baty went 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI in Friday's 10-8 loss to the Rays.
The young third baseman took Aaron Civale deep for a three-run blast in the second inning to open the scoring, and he then connected for a solo shot off Jason Adam in the ninth. It was the first multi-homer performance of Baty's big-league career, and it snapped a 27-game drought for the 24-year-old -- his only other long ball in 2024 came back on March 30. Despite the power outage, Baty has taken a big step forward in his development this year, and through 30 contests he's slashing .271/.340/.385, a massive improvement on last season's .212/.275/.323 line.
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Mets' Brett Baty: On bench versus righty
Rotowire
Baty is out of the lineup for Monday's game versus the Cubs, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
The Cubs have right-hander Jameson Taillon on the mound, but the Mets are rewarding the right-handed-hitting Mark Vientos with a start at third base after he hit a walk-off home run in Sunday's 11-inning win over the Cardinals. Baty is just 3-for-25 at the plate over his last nine games.
Baty (hamstring) is starting at third base and batting fifth in Sunday's series finale against the Dodgers.
Baty wasn't in the starting lineup for the Mets' last three games due to left hamstring tightness. He was able to pinch hit Saturday at third base in the seventh inning and went 0-for-2. Baty has had a decent start to the season, slashing .295/.348/.361 with one home run and nine RBI over 66 plate appearances.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Could be available Saturday
Rotowire
Baty (hamstring) is not in the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the Dodgers, but he said that he believes he can be available off the bench, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
Baty has missed the Mets' last two games after experiencing left hamstring tightness in Tuesday's game against the Pirates. Baty admitted he isn't at full strength, but feels that he is close enough to be able to contribute off the bench if needed. Joey Wendle will start at third base Saturday and bat eighth against Dodgers right-hander Gavin Stone.
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Mets' Brett Baty: Not starting Friday
Rotowire
Baty (hamstring) is not in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Dodgers.
Baty missed Wednesday's game against the Pirates after experiencing tightness in his left hamstring Tuesday. He did some running and agility tests ahead of Friday's game, but he has not provided a timeline on his return, per Pat Ragazzo of SI.com. Baty has started the season slashing .305/.359/.373 with one home run and nine RBI over 64 plate appearances.
Baty (hamstring) said Wednesday that he's optimistic that he'll avoid the 10-day injured list, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.
Baty experienced left hamstring tightness during Tuesday's 3-1 win over the Pirates and is out of the lineup for Wednesday's series finale. However, he's feeling much better a day later and won't be sent in for imaging, leaving him confident that he'll be ready to play in a few days. The Mets have an off day Thursday, providing the young third baseman an extra day of rest before he perhaps returns to action this weekend against the Dodgers.
