AP
The scouts got this one wrong — and at least one of them isn’t afraid to admit it.
Mark Vientos never attained star prospect status within the Mets system because of various questions about his defensive ability, bat speed and emotional makeup. But after getting recalled to the major leagues in May and receiving a chance to play every day, the 24-year-old blossomed into a top performer for a club that surged into the National League Championship Series, where they now trail 3-1 to the Dodgers.
“He’s outperformed what I thought he would be, and any scout that’s seen him over the years, if they don’t say the same thing, they’re lying,” a scout from a National League team told Sports+. “Hats off to Vientos for hanging in there and being determined to become a better player.”
Vientos battled for the job in spring training, but was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse after Mets brass decided on Brett Baty as the third baseman. Baty struggled early, giving Vientos another shot — last season he shuffled between Syracuse and the Mets, but never got a chance at sustained playing time under general manager Billy Eppler and manager Buck Showalter.