The New York Mets are once again making appearances in projected batting orders. This time, it was the crew at SNY who compared two different potential lineups, and both agreed on one key point: Juan Soto and Bo Bichette need to be stacked back-to-back to ensure maximum offensive firepower.
BNNY panelists Anthony McCarron and John Jastremski unveiled their projected Mets batting orders for the upcoming season, and they were aligned on one major detail: Francisco Lindor, Soto and Bichette slotted 1-through-3 at the top of the lineup.
In the cleanup spot, both analysts also agreed on Jorge Polanco, who hit .265 last season with the Seattle Mariners. It marked the second-most productive home run season of his 12-year career, as he launched 26 long balls.
Mets’ Projected 2026 Batting Orders
After the No. 4 spot, the projections began to differ. McCarron penciled in Mark Vientos at No. 5, while Jastremski opted for Brett Baty in that role. Both, however, agreed that Venezuelan catcher Francisco Álvarez should hit sixth in the projected order.
“Baty in RF is… let’s just call it ‘silly.’ If it’s not Benge, it’s pretty clearly Tauchman/Melendez. Outside of that from Anthony, both are solid. Only real improvement would be moving Soto to leadoff and Lindor down to 3, but we know the Mets aren’t doing that to start,” Eric Froehlich said while reacting to the BNNY lineup projections.
Jastremski showed significantly more confidence in Marcus Semien, placing him in the seventh spot. McCarron, on the other hand, slotted him at the bottom of the order. In his most recent season with the Texas Rangers, Semien posted a .230 batting average, the second-lowest mark of his career.