Mets keeping Brandon Nimmo in leadoff spot — ‘for now’

JUPITER, Fla. — Brandon Nimmo appears secure in the Mets’ leadoff spot for now, but that doesn’t mean team officials haven’t at least toyed with the idea of moving him. 

Manager Carlos Mendoza acknowledged Saturday that he had “informal” conversations with Nimmo earlier in camp about potentially moving the veteran outfielder down the batting order but has reached the conclusion the team is better served by keeping him in his familiar spot. 

“If everybody is healthy, Nimmo will be in the leadoff spot, for now,” Mendoza said before the Mets’ 9-3 victory over the Cardinals in an exhibition game at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. 

Shifting Nimmo in the lineup would allow the Mets to put a better base-stealing option, such as Francisco Lindor or Starling Marte, atop the order, but the trade-off would be a potential dip in on-base percentage. Nimmo for his career has reached base at a .380 clip. 

“You play around with all different names, but it’s hard because [Nimmo] is a guy who gets on base, one of the best at getting on base,” Mendoza said. “I know Marte has done it before and Lindor has done it before and you go back to who you want hitting in those first few spots and Nimmo has done it for a long time and the on-base is hard to pass.” 

Sean Reid-Foley continued his impressive spring by pitching a perfect fifth inning with one strikeout.

The right-hander, who is vying for a spot in the bullpen, has pitched four scoreless innings in the Grapefruit League with seven strikeouts.

At some point, Mendoza expects Reid-Foley to get extended to pitching beyond one inning. 

Mark Vientos went 2-for-4 with a double, with balls off the bat that measured 104 mph and 99 mph. 

“He’s put in a lot of work behind the scenes,” Mendoza said. “The fact he’s getting good results as of late and getting good pitches to hit and making good swings and making hard contact, that is good to see to kind of get his confidence going a little bit, too.”