Brett Baty wins Mets’ third base battle to open season
NY Post
PORT ST. LUCIE — In a competition with limited alternatives, Brett Baty didn’t have to win the third-base job for the Mets this spring as much as avoid losing it.
On that count he’s succeeded.
The Mets are set to head north Monday night with Baty as their Opening Day starter at third base, giving the 24-year-old former first-round pick an opportunity to show he is the organization’s present and future at the position.
Mark Vientos and Joey Wendle are the other primary players in camp who played third base this spring.
The Mets also pursued J.D. Davis as a free-agent option who could provide insurance, but he ultimately signed with Oakland because of the opportunity for guaranteed playing time.
Baty has the highest ceiling as a total package from that group, and the Mets will begin discovering with Thursday’s opener at Citi Field whether he is the answer at third base after his underwhelming rookie season.
PHOENIX — Wednesday brought some cautiously optimistic updates for the Knicks frontcourt.
The Greatest Escape in franchise history was perpetrated by Glen Sather, when the general manager extricated himself and the Rangers from the final five years of Scott Gomez’s contract by moving the $7,357,143-per-year center to Montreal on June 30, 2009 after two years in New York.
The Yankees publicly are on the same page: Hal Steinbrenner, like Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone before him, said that issues with the club’s fundamentals did not hover over the team all season.
The first day of the rest of Daniel Jones’ dwindling time with the Giants arrived Wednesday, with Jones in the building, in the meetings, on the practice field (although not doing very much) and not at all part of the game plan for the next game, relegated to a non-participant role for the remainder of the season.
There will be a little extra magic for Knicks-Spurs on Christmas Day.
The quickest way for the Giants to climb out of quarterback hell is also the quickest way to extend their stay there for at least three more years.
The Lakers’ decision to keep Bronny James away from G League road games has sparked some debate about the level of preferential treatment the franchise is giving to LeBron’s son.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — The Rangers continue to flex their strength on the road this season.
One of Tom Thibodeau’s stated points of emphasis for the Knicks this season — to increase their volume of 3-point attempts to take advantage of their proficiency from the outside — is starting to come to fruition.
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — It’s the best-case scenario for Filip Chytil and the Rangers.