![\"Luisangel](\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/03\/Luisangel-Acuna-3.jpg?w=1024\")
Instead of competing with Brett Baty, Donovan Walton and Luis De Los Santos for one backup role, there figures to be two spots open at this point, including regular playing time until McNeil gets healthy.<\/p>\n
Acu\u00f1a made a nice diving play to his left on a sharp grounder by Washington\u2019s Nathaniel Lowe for an out in a 4-1 loss on Saturday.<\/p>\n
The question the Mets will face if it comes down to a decision is whether Acu\u00f1a is better suited to play every day at second in the majors or in a utility role if Baty wins the second base job.<\/p>\n
A third possibility is Acu\u00f1a playing every day in the minors to start the year.<\/p>\n \u201cI just continue to play and work hard,\u201d Acu\u00f1a said. \u201cThat way I know I can control what I control and they\u2019ll make a decision. I\u2019m fine with any decision they make.\u201d<\/p>\n Scouts continue to like Acu\u00f1a\u2019s upside, and he\u2019s got more experience at second base than Baty, who only began playing the position a year ago at Syracuse.<\/p>\n Baty, a natural third baseman who has been converted into a utility-type player after losing the job at third to Mark Vientos last season, has had a solid spring and shown a good glove, as well as range, at second, but his throws sometimes have been off target.<\/p>\n Carlos Mendoza also noted the greater amount of responsibility second basemen have when it comes to decision-making around the field on each pitch than third basemen, which is a process Baty still is learning.<\/p>\n Acu\u00f1a got off to a rough start offensively, opening Grapefruit League action by going 2-for-16 with no extra-base hits in his first seven games, but he entered Saturday with four hits in his previous 11 at-bats, including his first extra-base hit of the spring.<\/p>\n But he still didn\u2019t have a walk.<\/p>\n Mendoza said he\u2019d liked what he\u2019d seen recently from Acu\u00f1a, and even though he has just 14 games of major league experience, he\u2019s more tested than most young players with that little amount of playing time.<\/p>\n \u201cI think what we loved about him was his ability to defend the middle of the field incredibly well, which is what you desperately need when you are in a pennant chase,\u201d senior VP of player development Andy Green said of Acu\u00f1a this week. \u201cAnd what he did with the bat was an extreme bonus.\u201d<\/p>\n And Acu\u00f1a expects that time to pay dividends this season.<\/p>\n \u201cThat gave me a lot of experience, playing in those types of games,\u201d Acu\u00f1a said. \u201cWhen I do start playing here again, I won\u2019t have the same type of nerves.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. \u2014 The cameo Luisangel Acu\u00f1a made with the Mets last September didn\u2019t just impact the team\u2019s view of the infielder. It also made a difference for Acu\u00f1a. As he battles to win on\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":41630,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[1236,44,17,50],"class_list":["post-41629","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb","tag-luisangel-acuna","tag-mlb","tag-new-york-mets","tag-sports"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"Luisangel](\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2025\/03\/Luisangel-Acuna-2-1.jpg?w=1024\")