Mets option Mark Vientos to Triple-A to make room for Starling Marte
Two days after hitting a walk-off homer for the Mets against the St. Louis Cardinals, Mark Vientos has been optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse.
The move was made to clear room on the 26-man roster for Starling Marte, who was activated from the bereavement list.
"Yeah I was hoping for longer, but kind of gave me the idea that it was just for Marte so not really surprised," Vientos told reporters. "It is what it is."
Added Vientos: "It’s not challenging, it's just the way life is. There’s obstacles in life and now it’s for me to see how I take advantage of my chances and my opportunity and I just gotta put my head down and keep working."
With DJ Stewart and J.D. Martinez on the roster, there is no clear role at the moment for Vientos.
The fact that Joey Wendle is the team's only backup middle infielder made any potential swap of Wendle for Vientos a non-option.
And if the Mets decide to move on from Wendle at any point, they will almost certainly replace him with another player capable of handling shortstop and second base.
Vientos had the inside track to the Mets' DH job before the team signed Martinez, but he is now in a purgatory of sorts.
He has been mashing the ball in Triple-A the last two seasons (.999 OPS in 2023, .923 OPS this year), but a combination of the Mets' glut of defensively-challenged hitters at the big league level and Vientos' iffy glove at third base has him in a tough spot.
If Brett Baty continues to struggle at the plate, a possibility exists that the Mets could turn to Vientos at third base.
Vientos hit well in the majors toward the end of last season -- especially in the power department -- when he was given a real shot to play regularly.
