The Mets kicked off their spring training with a pair of split-squad games.
Mets @ Astros
The first Mets game was played at West Palm Beach at 1 pm, where the Mets sent their B squad to face the Houston Astros. Some of the major prospects in the starting lineup were 1B Mark Vientos, CF Alex Ramirez, and 3B Brett Baty. Baty, who was the center of lots of chatter after the Mets signed and then lost Carlos Correa, showed his presence at the plate as he went 2-2 with a home run and a single, along with a walk. (Baty also committed one error)
Baty will be a name to closely monitor throughout Spring Training as he looks to make a push for an opening day roster spot. Current roster members Luis Guillorme and Omar Narváez both started today. As for the game itself, Baty’s home run would be the only Mets runs of the game, as the Astros took the lead in the bottom of the 7th when they scored three unearned runs.
Final Score: Mets 2 – Astros 4
Mets vs. Marlins
The latter of the two games was played in beautiful Port St. Lucie, where the Mets A squad took on the Miami Marlins.
Jose Butto, the starter of the memorable Mets comeback win vs. the Phillies with two Mark Cahna home runs, began the festivities today. Butto got his first four outs via the strikeout, but after only 1.2 innings, he was pulled. From there until the end of the game, Showalter would use a variety of different minor league pitchers.
Looking about 10 pounds lighter, Pete Alonso smashed a home run to left center, along with two other sharply hit singles.
The rest of the Mets infield also had solid games, and all four got at least three plate appearances. This is part of Buck Showalter’s plan to get his starters as many reps as possible before they ship off to the World Baseball Classic in about ten days.
Final Score: Mets 5 – Marlins 2
