As a 24-year old, Tomas Nido appeared in 34 games for the Mets in 2018 thanks in large part to injuries to Travis d’Arnaud, Kevin Plawecki and—later in the season—Devin Mesoraco. Considered a promising defensive prospect, Nido’s bat was clearly not ready for the majors, as he recorded a .438 OPS and 23 OPS+ in his 90 plate appearances in 2018.
Last offseason saw the Mets aggressively try to upgrade their catching situation. After flirting with emptying the cupboard of more young talent for J.T. Realmuto, then unsuccessfully attempting to lure Yasmani Grandal to Queens, the team ultimately signed Wilson Ramos to a 2 year, $19 million contract, then somewhat surprisingly brought d’Arnaud back for depth.