QUEENS — When Buck Showalter’s pregame press conference on Sunday meandered to Ronny Mauricio, the Mets manager flipped the script.
“Where would you play him?” he asked the room prior to New York’s 6-3 victory over the Seattle Mariners.
When an answer was deemed inconclusive because Mauricio has only played second base in his first three pro games and no one has seen him play left field or third base in the majors, Showalter was quick with his rebuttal.
“Oh, you will.”
Mauricio’s debut series couldn’t have gone much better. In three games against the Mariners, he went 5-for-11 (.455 BA) — headlined by a 117.1 mph double for his first major-league hit on Friday night — with a 1.000 OPS and two stolen bases.
First career knock for Ronny Mauricio! 👏 pic.twitter.com/xjqBySO51f
— New York Mets (@Mets) September 1, 2023
“It’s been great,” Mauricio said of his initial taste of life in the show. “Since the very moment they called me to tell me that I would be up here, I said, ‘You know what? Let’s go out there, let’s go have fun because these first moments don’t happen twice.’
“So I just want to continue to go out there and continue to play well.”
While his bat looks as though it will adjust fine in the pros — his plate discipline was considered one of the reasons why he was kept down in Triple-A for as long as he was — his glove at second base also looked serviceable. He completed all 14 of his chances in the field while helping turn three double plays alongside Francisco Lindor.
“I’m starting to feel more comfortable there,” Mauricio said. “There’s a lot of work to do, to get fully accustomed to playing second base. But so far, so good and I’m looking forward to it.”
But the Mets are preaching versatility when it comes to the 22-year-old, who was a natural shortstop but was forced to find another avenue to the majors after Francisco Lindor was acquired three years ago. He began playing third base and left field this season in the minors, getting just 17 innings of work at the hot corner and 214.1 innings in the outfield.
Consider this an opportunity for him to learn on the fly. The Mets have nothing to lose and considering how his bat has played to start, some defensive growing pains to find a perfect fit for a burgeoning talent is well worth it over the final month of the campaign.
For more on Ronny Mauricio and the Mets, visit AMNY.com
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