NEW YORK \u2014 There is a decent chance the New York Mets\u2019 group of position players next season looks similar to this year\u2019s bunch with some tweaks.<\/p>\n
At first base and second base, the Mets could create competitions, which might help them become less reliant on one or two players at each position.<\/p>\n
A lot of time remains before they must make such roster decisions. New York will spend the final six weeks of the season, in part, evaluating its internal options. Aside from third baseman Bo Bichette\u2019s decision about whether to opt out after this season, the Mets\u2019 position-player group doesn\u2019t spark many questions.<\/p>\n
One major concern, though, is what they do with the right side of their infield, which could affect Marcus Semien, Jorge Polanco and Jared Young, among others.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy goal is always to play every day,\u201d Semien said. \u201cI want to be playing well enough for them to want to play me every single day. I understand that they want to keep me fresh, keep me healthy and keep my performance at a high level. I\u2019m so competitive with myself to want to play every day and play at a high level that it\u2019s always going to be my goal.\u201d<\/p>\n
The failures of Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns\u2019 major offseason shakeup are felt most acutely at first base and second base. Stearns traded outfielder Brandon Nimmo for Semien, who replaced Jeff McNeil at second base, and signed Polanco to split time at designated hitter and first base as Pete Alonso\u2019s replacement. Neither decision has worked out in 2026.<\/p>\n
Why are baseball catchers getting hit in the… groin so much more often?<\/p>\n
Tifo Sports<\/p>\n
The Mets\u2019 production at second base is the worst in the major leagues (-0.2 fWAR). The Mets\u2019 production at first base is the second worst in the major leagues (-1.2 fWAR).<\/p>\n
Semien, 35, has two years left on his seven-year, $175 million contract, while Polanco, 33, is signed through just next season after inking a two-year, $40 million deal in the offseason.<\/p>\n
For the 2027 plan, the Mets might already be tipping their hand. Semien said that when he came off the injured list last month, Mets officials talked with him about sometimes other players starting at second base. At first base during the second half, the Mets have mostly started Young, who has played well. Polanco, who has battled an Achilles tendon issue all season, hasn\u2019t played first base since the season\u2019s opening series. This month, catcher Francisco Alvarez has logged almost as many starts at designated hitter (four) as Polanco (six).<\/p>\n
The Mets could end up leaning on similar timeshares heading into next season, perhaps with an addition or two at second base and\/or first base who helps in the margins.<\/p>\n
At first base, it wouldn\u2019t be too wild to think the Mets sport a platoon featuring Young, a left-handed batter who holds a .799 OPS against right-handed pitchers (.579 against lefties).<\/p>\n
While Brett Baty, a left-handed batter, has drawn a handful of starts at second base the last few weeks over the right-handed-batting Semien, the Mets also boast a couple of infielders among their top prospects in the upper minor leagues.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s one potential path, considering their players under team control and a relatively weak free-agent class. If the Mets want to further splurge in free agency, third baseman\/outfielder Teruaki Sato, 27, could be an option if he decides to leave Japan (a possible lockout may complicate matters). Perhaps the trade market contains more creative approaches.<\/p>\n
In the meantime, over the Mets\u2019 final 39 games, the performances of Semien, Polanco and Young bear watching. Since returning from the injured list July 7, Polanco, who hasn\u2019t played since Tuesday, is slashing just .103\/.153\/.176 (73 plate appearances), appearing only at designated hitter. Semien said he is running at 100 percent after dealing with a hip injury, but his defensive numbers have dipped drastically, and he owns a .626 OPS, fifth-worst in the majors (Baty\u2019s .612 OPS is third-worst). After starting 20 of the Mets\u2019 last 26 games, Young carries an .845 OPS in the second half.<\/p>\n
What the Mets learned at those positions in 2026 is the danger of counting on one player \u2014 aside from All-Star-level contributors \u2014 when faced with underperformance or injury.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"NEW YORK \u2014 There is a decent chance the New York Mets\u2019 group of position players next season…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":856172,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[558],"tags":[64,63,591,1830,85],"class_list":["post-856171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-mlb","tag-new-york-mets","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/856171","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=856171"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/856171\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/856172"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=856171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=856171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=856171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}