The Mets are calling up Ronny Mauricio ahead of Tuesday’s game against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, per multiple reports.
With Mark Vientos suffering a hamstring injury on Monday, the expectation is that he will be placed on the IL, with Mauricio taking his spot on the active roster.
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Speaking late last week, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said Mauricio was still getting his legs under him after missing well over a year due to ACL surgery.
“He’s doing a great job,” Stearns said on Friday at Citi Field. “Number one is health and getting him back and building up the volume. We’re continuing to do that. But any time you see players consistently hitting lasers all over the field — which is what he’s doing right now in Triple-A — you pay attention. So we’re paying attention, and we’ll continue to monitor that and see where it goes.”
The numbers the toolsy Mauricio put up while with Triple-A Syracuse this season were outrageous.
In 39 plate appearances over nine games, he was slashing .515/.564/.818 with three home runs, one double, four stolen bases, and eight RBI.
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Mauricio’s game action a few weeks ago with St. Lucie was his first time back on the field in a competitive fashion in roughly a year and a half. So the Mets had been taking things slowly with him as he built up his reps and stamina.
He had been playing in back-to-back games and recently played three games in four days, but has not yet played three games in a row since returning.
With the 24-year-old Mauricio up, it would be a bit of a surprise if he isn’t given regular playing time out of the gate.
He has the ability to play second base and third base (in addition to his natural shortstop position, which is blocked at the big league level by Francisco Lindor). But it’s also possible the Mets give Mauricio an extended look at designated hitter in Vientos’ expected absence.
Mauricio, who flashed high exit velocities and his tantalizing athleticism during his first taste of the majors in 2023, will bring a different dynamic to a Mets team that remains in need of a bit of a jolt offensively.
