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Even with franchise royalty such as David Wright and Howard Johnson owning third base for the Mets during the team’s history, the position has been a club trouble spot at times, too.

Once, the Mets traded a future baseball immortal named Nolan Ryan to try to fix their hot corner, but Jim Fregosi didn’t work out. Neither did Joe Foy, who cost the Mets a burgeoning star outfielder named Amos Otis in a swap with the Royals.

Even in recent seasons, the Mets have sought stability at third. It’s been somewhat elusive – since Wright’s last start on Opening Day in 2016, they have had six different players start the opener at the position.

Now, however, the Mets could have a long-term solution in Mark Vientos, the 25-year-old slugger who enjoyed a huge 2024 season that featured, among other eye-popping items, 27 home runs and 14 playoff RBI, a Mets record for a single postseason. 

“I knew they traded Nolan Ryan, but I didn’t know it was for third base,” Vientos said. The idea that he could be a third-base fixture for the Mets is “super-flattering,” Vientos said.

“I take it seriously,” he added. “And I work my tail off every day because I do want to make that happen.” 

 This has been a vastly different spring camp for Vientos, who spent last March hoping to earn a spot on the team at the same time he was sifting through chatter that the Mets were looking to bring in a name-brand free agent that would doom his roster chances. At one point, he said he felt like he had to “prove himself two times,” but pledged to keep grinding.

Ultimately, the Mets signed J.D. Martinez, meaning Vientos started the season in the minors instead of as the Mets’ designated hitter. But Vientos was up for good by mid-May and a breakout was in bloom at third.

“Last year, he was battling as a player,” said Mets manager Carlos Mendoza of the differences between Vientos’ last two springs. “You know, it’s a better feeling when you know you’re on the team and now you can work on, whether it’s your offense, your defense, your base-running. And that’s what he’s doing. 

“Now you see a guy who is comfortable, that had success during the regular season and the playoffs and that means a lot…I’ve seen a guy that knows he belongs in the big leagues and he knows he’s a big part of this team.” 

Mets fans have been enamored with Vientos since last season when he hit .266 with a .322 on-base percentage and a .516 slugging. His slugging percentage ranked fifth in the National League among players with at least 300 at-bats. He hit five playoff home runs, including a grand slam against the Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLCS. 

So far this spring, Vientos is 8-for-30 (.267) with two homers and five RBI. 

“I was fortunate to have the year I had last year, and they give recognition for that,” Vientos said. “And that's what makes these fans so great and I appreciate it.”

But there’s more. “The team is, for sure, giving me a different type of respect” after last season,” Vientos said. “I mean, I feel like that’s just like any job you do – you kind of have to prove yourself. And I think I proved myself somewhat last year and I want to keep proving myself and keep proving myself and gain respect from my team, in the league and from fans.” 

Mixing that kind of appreciation with Vientos’ own innate confidence could make for a strong concoction for the Mets. Vientos said his confidence was instilled by his parents when he was young.

“I’ve gotta give my parents credit,” he said. “I’ve always believed in myself. I always believed that I was destined for great things. And confidence is like a skill you work on for years and years.”

Hence, that nickname – “Swaggy V.” In part, anyway. “Swaggy V was kind of a name that came up just for the way I dressed,” Vientos said. “And, I mean, you could say the way I dress is because I’m confident. I do wear some flamboyant stuff, but I think it’s just fun, just me trying to show my personality.” 

More of that might be coming out this spring. In camp, Vientos smiles easily and greets teammates gleefully in the clubhouse. He really does look, as Mendoza says, like “a comfortable player.” 

Maybe even like the Mets’ next long-term third baseman. That would put him in some nice company.

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – It was not a great night for Mets pitchers with pristine spring ERAs Saturday night, as they suffered a 4-1 loss to the Nationals at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches.

The Mets fell to 8-11-3 this spring, while Washington upped its record to 11-9-1.

Here are the main takeaways:

- Clay Holmes, the converted reliever who will start the Mets' season opener in 12 days, came into his start having thrown 9.2 scoreless innings this spring. But he gave up his first run of camp with two outs in the fourth inning when Paul DeJong hit an RBI double. Holmes gave up two hits in the frame; he had given up two hits all spring before that.

Holmes left the game after giving up a one-out single in the fifth inning. Reliever Max Kranick surrendered a triple to Daylen Lile, the first batter he faced, meaning Holmes was charged with a second run. Holmes allowed three hits and two runs in 4.1 innings, striking out two and walking one.

The right-hander now has a 1.29 ERA this spring and opposing batters are 5-for-49 against him, a paltry .106 average. Holmes, who threw 77 pitches, will get six “ups” in his last tune-up before the opener, Carlos Mendoza said.

- Kranick had come into the game with a spotless ledger, too, having not allowed a run over eight innings -- but the Nats got him, too. Kranick allowed two runs and three hits over 1.1 innings of work, including a two-run double to José Tena in the sixth that ended Kranick’s evening and pushed Washington’s lead to 4-1. His ERA went from 0.00 to 1.93 during his outing. 

- The Mets took a 1-0 lead in the third inning on a fielder’s choice grounder by Pete Alonso with the bases loaded. Alonso hit a hard shot to third that DeJong snagged. DeJong ran and touched third and tried to nab Alonso at first for what would’ve been an inning-ending double play, but Alonso beat the relay and got a spring RBI for his hustle. 

- Luisangel Acuña, vying for playing time as a utility man or perhaps as the second baseman in Jeff McNeil’s absence, made a snazzy play at second in the first inning, diving to his left for a grounder and throwing out Nathaniel Lowe at first. The crowd gasped. Acuña later stole his third base of the spring.

- It remains to be seen how many at-bats Jesse Winker, a left-handed hitter, will get against lefties during the regular season. But on Saturday night he offered a tantalizing case for at least a few. In the second inning, he led off with a loud double to left field against southpaw starter Mitchell Parker.

One inning later, he drew a walk against Parker. Last season, Winker had 104 plate appearances against lefties, batting .236 with a .674 OPS. In 404 plate appearances against righties, Winker hit .258 with a .788 OPS.

-Former Nationals star Juan Soto got a nice hand from Nats (and Mets) fans before his first at-bat. There was a noisy contingent of Met rooters at the game.

-Mets lefty reliever A.J. Minter threw a scoreless seventh inning in his second outing of the spring. He picked a runner off at first base, according to the box score.

Game MVP

Not the Mets’ clutch hitting department. The club went 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

Highlights

Pete Alonso with an RBI to bring Donovan Walton in for the first run of the game pic.twitter.com/S7aAWARLzP

— SNY (@SNYtv) March 15, 2025

The Yankees were defeated the Baltimore Orioles 5-4 in their Spring Breakout Game on Saturday night.

Here are some takeaways...

- Carlos Lagrange took the mound for the Baby Bombers. The 21-year-old was terrific as he showed off his 70-grade fastball, touching 100 mph consistently from the get-go. After allowing a leadoff single, he retired the next 11 hitters in a row before Vance Honeycutt beat him to left-center for an inside-the-park homer.

Lagrange finished with a final line of two runs (one earned) on two hits, one walk, and two strikeouts across 4.0 innings.

- Spencer Jones almost made a nice running grab ranging over to left-center on the inside-the-parker, but he wasn't able reel it in. The slugger reached base three times but his only serious damage came in the top of the seventh as he was gifted a double after the left fielder lost it in the lights.

- George Lombard Jr. was quiet at the plate over his first three at-bats, but then he reached in his next two with a walk and a single. The 19-year-old first-round pick was really impressive this spring -- demolishing a pair of homers, including a 414-foot blast that left the bat at a whopping 108.4 mph.

- Jesus Rodriguez drove in two of New York's four runs with a run scoring groundout and an RBI single.

- Ben Hess, the Yankees' first-round pick from last year, made his unofficial pro debut. He cruised through a perfect first inning of work but then allowed a run to score on Dylan Beavers' RBI single in the bottom of the sixth. The 22-year-old struck out 106 batters in 68 innings last year at Alabama.

- Alexander Vargas made a terrific over-the-shoulder running grab on a pop up in shallow right in the ninth.

Whats next

The Yankees split up to play a pair of 1:05 p.m. games on Sunday, staying in Port Charlotte to face the Rays and in Tampa against the Pittsburgh Pirates.