While the New York Mets are over .500 after Wednesday's win, all fans want to talk about is how poorly third baseman Eduardo Escobar is hitting while prospect Brett Baty is lighting up Triple-A.
Eduardo Escobar, a .253 career hitter over 13 MLB seasons, is hitting .105 through 12 regular-season games. He boasts a .154 on-base percentage and .210 slugging percentage with just one home run and four RBI after going 0-for-3 Wednesday against the San Diego Padres.
Conversely, Baty, who was sent down to the minors at the end of spring training as the New York Mets deemed that he needed "more reps" at third base, is hitting .391 in six games at Triple-A Syracuse. He stat line includes a .482 OBP and .870 SLG with three home runs, seven RBIs and six runs.
It's not just Eduardo Escobar who Mets fans would like to see ousted from the big-league squad. With owner Steve Cohen committing roughly $364 million to the payroll for 2023 — including player benefits, the money owed to 40-man players in the minors, and other things that are factored in for luxury tax purposes — New Yorkers were expecting more out of their team than a 7-6 start to the season.
The Mets escaped a worst-case scenario last week after Baty left a game due to discomfort in the same right thumb that he underwent surgery on last year to repair a torn ligament. An examination and scan determined that the cause of the discomfort was mere inflammation. Baty returned to the lineup and was seemingly unaffected by his sore thumb.
While the New York Mets were just 1 1/2 games behind the Atlanta Braves in the National League East race, Mets fans are anticipating much more than hovering around the .500 mark. Whether swapping out Eduardo Escobar for Baty would be the spark to ignite New York's liftoff remains to be seen.
Replacing Eduardo Escobar with Baty should come with tempered expectations for New York Mets faithful
A squad with heavy World Series expectations, the New York Mets have stumbled out of the gates offensively. The team is 25th out of 30 MLB ballclubs with a .218 batting average.
However, any hopes of Baty replacing Eduardo Escobar and immediately turning around the club's offensive woes upon his hoped-for recall must come with the caveat that he did hit just .184 over 11 games with the Mets at the end of last season.