Projected 3B for 2026: Brett Baty
Projected 3B WAR for 2026: 3.0
After a second-half collapse resulted in an 83-79 record and no trip to the playoffs, the Mets unsurprisingly aren’t leaving not-quite-good-enough alone this winter.
They are dangling Kodai Senga and Brandon Nimmo in trade talks, according to Passan, yet have also been linked to some of the more prominent names on the free-agent market. Those include their own guys, such as Pete Alonso and Edwin Díaz.
Whether or not the Mets retain Alonso, they might opt to end the experiment they ran with Baty, Mark Vientos and Ronny Mauricio at the hot corner this season and install a solid everyday player. Okamoto is such a player in theory, and Citi Field is not as punishing to righty power hitters as other parks we’ve discussed so far.
Then again, the status quo at third base isn’t exactly unworkable. If Alonso does return, that could squash whatever fit there is for Okamoto in Queens at present.
AloJapan.com