The belief in Brett Batyhas always been there. The question appeared to be if the Mets’ youngster had the self-belief to match.
With the score tied and two down in the bottom of the seventh inning on Tuesday night, the 26-year-old offered an answer, taking a 1-1 changeup from Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Mitch Keller the opposite way for what proved to be the game-winning solo home run in a 2-1 win.
“I’ve always thought I’m capable of doing whatever I want to accomplish in this game,” Baty said after the game. “I’m having some success right now, and, yeah, it’s nice.”
The home run gave him four in his last five starts since rejoining the team from Triple-A. What has been the difference for the infielder during this streak? Manager Carlos Mendoza pinpointed it.
“Confidence. A guy that knows he belongs in the big leagues and just having fun,” Mendoza said. “He‘s preparing, he’s going out there, keeping it simple, getting pitches to hit and not overthinking it. And he’s using the whole field. We saw it getting a single to the pull side and that homer.”
Baty said he doesn’t feel that different from before. “It’s just the game,” Baty, who went 2-for-3 while playing second on Tuesday, said. “There’s a lot of highs and lows, you just gotta be the same guy every single day.”
Mendoza noted that Baty is taking reps in the batting cage using the high-velo machine and taking “random BP” where he doesn’t know whether it’s a fastball or breaking ball coming.
“Basically when he gets out there [in the game], it’s like he had a few at-bats already,” he said, adding this is nothing new for the club or those around the league with the high-tech machines, but some guys need a bit more time to implement them into their routines. “I’m glad that Baty’s open to these new ideas and challenges himself, and he’s seeing these new results.”
Part of Baty’s struggles during his first stint in the big leagues to open the season appeared to come from him falling behind in counts. (He went down 0-1 in 18 of his first 24 at-bats and 0-2 nine times to start the year.) Baty said he still feels like he’s falling behind, but is working on being more aggressive to counter that.
“I need to go up there sometimes and hit the breaking ball that they just dump over the middle of the plate to start,” he said. “Right now, I’m focused on driving the pitch that I want to drive instead of just swinging at strikes.”
Mendoza credited him with “not overthinking what the pitcher is trying to do” and “keeping it simple.”
“Making sure I’m ready to hit, and if I’m getting a fastball, stay short and use the whole field. And if I’m getting a breaking ball, I’m gonna be able to keep my hands back, stay in position where I can do damage,” the manager said. “… Simple approach and he’s aggressive and he’s not missing pitches.”
And, of course, “Even his takes are different,” Mendoza said. “It looks like he’s ready to hit, and then, shutting it down. For me, that’s a sign of a good hitter.”
The round-tripper, which looked like it would just be a liner over the left fielder’s head before sneaking over the wall, was another demonstration of the “impressive big-league power” the club had been waiting for.
“Every young player, when they first come up to the big leagues, they are looking to impress or trying to do a little too much,” Mendoza said. “Trying to have success or results out of the gate. Sometimes it takes a lot longer for guys. This guy performed at the minor league level and for some reason, it took some time to get comfortable here.”
He added, “Every player is different. For Baty, I’m glad he’s finally settling in and getting comfortable at this level.”
On dealing with the ups and downs of his career thus far, Baty said that, “Everybody’s journey in this game is different, and I’m thankful for every single part of mine, for sure.”
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