Exploring the Mets' Best Options to Solve Their Hole at Second Base

Second base has been one of the Mets' most problematic positions this season after the addition of Marcus Semien didn't pan out.

Marcus Semien hasn't worked out as the Mets' starting second baseman this season. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The 2026 Mets are heading towards irrelevance, meaning one of President of Baseball Operations David Stearns' first jobs with his improved job security is to start fixing the team's holes for 2027. While first base and the rotation are open questions, the Mets also need to figure out what to do at second base.

The highly unpopular (but necessary) Brandon Nimmo trade brought Marcus Semien to New York, clearing the way for Jeff McNeil to get essentially salary-dumped to the Athletics. Moving on from McNeil has proven to be prescient as he is hitting just .231 with three home runs, 26 RBIs and a .603 OPS in 83 games, but Semien has been an outright disaster for the Mets.

Semien, currently on the injured list with a hip issue, is batting just .214 with nine home runs and 29 RBIs while showing significant defensive slippage. Even though Semien's contract has two more years on it, the odds of him sticking around long enough to fulfill it are slim to none.

Internal second base options

The Mets have many players capable of playing second base, even if none of the options are particularly inspiring. Semien is working his way back from a hip injury and recently indicated that it was significantly impacting him.

Will Sammon of The Athletic spoke to Semien, who believes his hip issues tie back to a foot injury he sustained with Texas last season and hopes resolving them will allow him to be more productive. Given how poorly Semien played this season, simply handing him the full-time second base job would be a bad idea.

The source of Marcus Semien's hip injury might date back further than fans expected. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The current fill-in plan is Brett Baty, who saw significant time at the keystone last season and is currently on a nine-game hitting streak. Baty is young enough that the Mets could hope to see him recapture more of his 2025 form, when he generated 3.1 WAR, but he has a .600 OPS through 90 games.

Three of Baty's four seasons with significant playing time in New York have seen him produce an OPS of .633 or lower, making 2025's breakout look more like an outlier,similar to how Mark Vientos' 2024 season compares to the rest of his career. Baty's defensive skills make him a good guy to have on a roster as a fill-in who can cover multiple infield positions, but banking on him as a long-term starter is risky.

The Mets have several other players on the active roster capable of playing second, including Bo Bichette (who played there for Toronto in the 2025 postseason) and A.J. Ewing, who covered second base on Thursday after Vientos left the game with a broken hand. Each is more valuable at their primary positions, third base and center field, respectively, so using them there would be a misallocation of resources.

Given Stearns's track record of trying to wring every last bit of value out of players on his roster, particularly those with guaranteed contracts, expect Semien to get another opportunity to prove himself when he returns from the IL. A strict lefty/righty platoon with Baty could make sense, considering Semien has been far more effective against lefties this season.

Prospects to watch

The Mets do have Ronny Mauricio down at Triple-A Syracuse as an option who can play second base, but Stearns doesn't seem to believe he can help at the big league level. Mauricio was sent down when Jorge Polanco returned from the IL earlier this week, leaving the Mets with two redundant players in Vientos and Eric Wagaman as right-handed-hitting first-base options rather than keeping Mauricio as the backup middle infielder.

The Mets will likely bring back Mauricio once they place Vientos on the injured list, but he doesn't look to get much playing time there since the organization appears higher on Baty. The long-term answer could well be Mitch Voit, the team's 2025 first-round pick, who has turned his season around after a slow start in the tough-hitting environment High-A Brooklyn offers.

Voit should be promoted to Double-A Binghamton at some point this season, but he is still far away from the majors. Unless the Mets see Voit dominate the minors like Ewing did over the past year, he won't be a factor in Flushing until at least 2028.

Trade options

Most of the trade options at second base right now are rentals, which doesn't make sense for the Mets to pursue at the moment. Jazz Chisholm Jr. could probably be had by the Yankees if they think it could help their roster elsewhere, while Luis Arráez is almost certainly headed out of San Francisco, but both will be free agents at the end of the year.

It doesn't make sense for this Mets team to acquire rental players since they need to retain prospects. If Stearns likes a player such as Arráez or Chisholm, the Mets could simply try to sign them after the season and retain their prospects.

The Yankees' Jazz Chisholm Jr. is one potential trade option to help the Mets solve their 2B woes. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The only kind of trade the Mets could make to address second base is to acquire a player with remaining club control, ensuring they'd be part of the team in 2027. Unlike at first base, where someone like Vinnie Pasquantino would be worth exploring, there isn't an obvious fit at second in the controllable trade market.

Free agency

Assuming the Mets go with some combination of Baty and Semien to navigate the remainder of this season, they could look to target a free-agent addition to address second base. Adding a third baseman and moving Bichette (who still has to decide whether to opt into his contract for next season) are possible, but second base is one of the few positions with good short-term options.

Brandon Lowe, Mauricio Dubón, Jonathan India and Arráez all make sense here, but the most intriguing name from a Mets' perspective is Gleyber Torres. The former Yankee has had an injury-plagued year in Detroit, missing significant time with an oblique injury, but still hit .280 with four home runs, 18 RBIs and a .790 OPS in 43 games.

Detroit used the qualifying offer on Torres last season, which he accepted for a one-year deal, and will not be able to do so again after this season. If the Tigers opt to enter a rebuilding phase after Tarik Skubal's departure, Torres would be on the market, likely seeking another short-term deal to re-establish his value.

Torres will only be 30 years old in 2026 and has a proven track record in New York, which matters a lot to the Mets given their proclivity for signing former Yankees in free agency. Offering a high-salaried two-year deal for Torres could be a strong play to improve the roster and add more depth to the lineup.

What the Mets should do at second base

The Mets will likely let Semien and Baty finish the year at second, which is fine to assess the value both players can offer in 2027. The smartest play for the Mets would be to sign Torres to a two- or three-year deal, giving them a younger player with a strong track record and ability to perform at the keystone in New York.

Having that kind of deal with Torres would mean the Mets don't need to rush Voit to the majors, giving him time to gain experience at the Double-A and Triple-A levels. Voit appears to be a long-term solution for the Mets, but his athleticism allows him to play multiple positions, potentially filling a utility role if they sign Torres to a multi-year deal.

Semien would be the odd man out in this scenario, which would require the Mets to either release him and pay out the final two years of his deal or execute a salary-dump-type trade. Those deals either yield lottery-ticket prospects or an equally underwater contract, with Stearns likely to opt for the former.