New York Mets Calling Up Powerful Prospect

The New York Mets, starved for offensive help, are calling up slugging prospect Mark Vientos. He is the organization's seventh-ranked prospect.

The New York Mets are calling up exciting prospect Mark Vientos, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.

Passan tweeted the news on Wednesday morning:

The New York Mets are calling up slugger Mark Vientos, sources tell ESPN. Vientos, 23, is hitting .333/.416/.688 with 13 home runs in 38 games at AAA this season, and as the Mets look to escape this dreadful start, they’ll turn to Vientos as part of the solution.

The New York Mets are calling up slugger Mark Vientos, sources tell ESPN. Vientos, 23, is hitting .333/.416/.688 with 13 home runs in 38 games at AAA this season, and as the Mets look to escape this dreadful start, they’ll turn to Vientos as part of the solution.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) May 17, 2023

He is currently the No. 7 ranked prospect in the Mets organization. He was drafted in the second round of the 2017 draft.

For more on Vientos, here's a portion of his MLB.com profile:

Vientos was only 17 when the Mets selected him in the second round of the 2017 Draft, and after a few years of buildup (including the lost 2020 season), he broke out in a big way with 25 homers, a .581 slugging percentage and .933 OPS in 83 games between Double-A and Triple-A in 2021. He continued to show plus pop in Syracuse last season with 24 blasts in 101 games and debuted for the Mets in September, when they were in dire need of righty designated hitter options. He went just 6-for-36 (.167) during that span and didn’t crack the club’s Wild Card roster.

The slugger is capable of exhibiting at least plus raw power with exit velocities going above 110 mph, and his 45.8 percent hard-hit rate was about equal to Pete Alonso’s in the Majors, albeit over a much smaller sample. That said, Vientos started putting the ball on the ground more than ever in 2022 -- 48.4 percent of the time, 14th-highest among 107 Triple-A qualifiers -- and his power comes more from natural strength than bat speed, calling into question how he’ll handle big league arms.

Like Brett Baty, the Mets have tried moving Vientos around from third base to left field, hoping his plus arm could give some defensive value at either spot. 

The Mets are currently a disappointing 20-23, have lost two straight, and are in fourth place in the National League East. Offensively, they are 21st in runs scored, 20th in hits, 24th in doubles, 20th in home runs and 19th in batting average.

The Mets take on the Rays on Wednesday at 7:10 p.m. ET.

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