QUEENS, NY — Another big-league opportunity is bringing more struggles for Brett Baty, whose slump worsened in the Mets’ 5-0 loss to the Miami Marlins on Wednesday afternoon at Citi Field by going 0-for-3 with two strikeouts, and a costly error in the field that eventually resulted in a pair of runs for the visitors.
Through 27 at-bats in 2025, Baty is just 3-for-27 (.111 average) with 11 strikeouts — just the latest example of major-league issues following the second baseman after a strong showing in spring training.
“Just kind of indecision, just being in between, not having the finger on the trigger,” Baty said as he attempted to diagnose where his struggles at the plate is coming from. “I need to do a better job offensively and defensively, for sure.”
When asked if it was a confidence issue, he said, “I guess you could pin it to that, a little bit.”
More often than not, Baty is finding himself behind on counts. In 11 of his first 24 at-bats, he was in an 0-1 or 0-2 hole.
“Just not letting them get ahead is something I need to work on and just being more aggressive,” Baty said. “That would help out a lot.”
The 25-year-old is now experiencing the majors in a fourth different season, but the adjustments have just not come, yet. In 544 previous big-league at-bats, he batted just .215 with a .607 OPS, 15 home runs, and 55 RBI.
But the action has been sporadic, whether it was because of injuries or demotions. He played in 50 games last year while losing the starting third-base job to Mark Vientos and saw 11 games in the bigs in his debut campaign in 2022 before getting sidelined with a torn UCL in his right thumb.
With starting second baseman Jeff McNeil sidelined, the left-handed Baty is platooning with Luisangel Acuna.
“I don’t know how exact it is, I think it’s around 25 ABs or so,” Baty said. “If you get five ABs a game, that’s what, five games? That’s not an excuse at all, but I’m just saying, it’s a small sample size and I need to control what I control and just come in here and be the same guy every single day.”
McNeil is projected to return from his oblique injury in late April, meaning that time is running out for Baty to prove that he can hack it in the show. It was a warning sent by Carlos Mendoza at the very start of spring training — one that does not appear to be too far from the infielder’s mind
“That’s always kind of in the back of your mind,” Baty admitted. “What I try to tell myself is I just have to control what I can control. So if I see my name in the lineup, control what I can control that day and just be who I am that day. Be where my feet are. That’s all I can say to that.”
Until then, though, Baty is going to continue to get chances, as Mendoza continues to exude confidence in him.
“It’s not easy because he wants to see results, but as of right now, he’s struggling,” Mendoza said. “He’s going through it. But he will continue to work hard, we’ll continue to support him, we will continue to give him opportunities, and he’s got to fight through it…
“We believe in the player. There’s tools, there’s a lot to like there. You can say the same thing about Luisangel Acuna… We have to do everything in our power to make sure we get the best out of them. You do that by giving these kids an opportunity, and they will continue to get them.”
