For a guy who technically still has three positions on his Baseball-Reference page, Mark Vientos is running out of actual chairs with the New York Mets.
Start with the DH spot. The Mets’ reported interest in Kyle Schwarber before he re-upped with the Phillies wasn’t just a fun little rumor to pass the time at the Winter Meetings — it was a neon billboard. You don’t chase a bat like Schwarber if you feel great about your in-house DH options. Even with Schwarber off the board, the message landed: David Stearns clearly wants a more established thumper in that role, not another year of “let’s see if Vientos figures it out.