Mark Anthony Vientos (born December 11, 1999) is an American professional baseball designated hitter and third baseman for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2022.

Early life and amateur career

Vientos' father was born in the Dominican Republic and raised in New York. As a result, Vientos grew up as a fan of the New York Mets. Vientos spent his first three years of high school at

Charles W. Flanagan High School Charles W. Flanagan High School is a public high school in Pembroke Pines, Florida, United States. Opened in 1996, it was the first public high school there. Flanagan's enrollment is just under 2600. Flanagan has a Florida Comprehensive Assessme ...

Pembroke Pines, Florida Pembroke Pines is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States. The city is located 22 miles (35 km) north of Miami. The population of Pembroke Pines is 171,178 as of the 2020 census. It is a suburb of and the fourth-most populous c ...

. In 2016, as a junior, he hit .321. That summer, he played in the Perfect Game All-American Classic at

Petco Park Petco Park is a baseball stadium in Downtown San Diego, California. It is the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's San Diego Padres, and has also been used as a venue for concerts, soccer, golf, and rugby. The ballpark is located between Se ...

. He transferred to American Heritage School in Plantation, Florida for his senior year in 2017. As a senior, he hit .417 over 26 games. After the season, he was selected by the New York Mets in the second round (59th overall) of the

2017 Major League Baseball draft The 2017 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft began on June 12, 2017. The draft assigned amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first 36 picks, including the first round and compensatory picks, were broadcast on MLB Network on J ...

. Vientos signed with the Mets for $1.5 million, forgoing his commitment to play college baseball at the University of Miami.

Professional career

After signing with the Mets, Vientos made his professional debut with the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League Mets before being promoted to the Kingsport Mets of the Rookie-level

Appalachian League The Appalachian League is a collegiate summer baseball league that operates in the Appalachian regions of Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, and North Carolina. Designed for rising freshmen and sophomores using wood bats, its season runs from ...

. Over 51 games between the two clubs, he batted .262 with four home runs and 26 RBIs. He returned to Kingsport in 2018, slashing .287/.389/.489 with 11 home runs and 52 RBIs in sixty games. In 2019, he played with the Columbia Fireflies of the Single–A South Atlantic League, hitting .255/.300/.411 with 12 home runs, 62 RBIs, and 27 doubles over 111 games. After the season, he was named the Mets Minor League Hitter of the Year. Vientos did not play a minor league game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. To begin the 2021 season, he was assigned to the

Binghamton Rumble Ponies The Binghamton Rumble Ponies are an American Minor League Baseball team based in Binghamton, New York. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the New York Mets major-league club. The Rumble Ponies play in Mira ...

of the Double-A Northeast. After slashing .281/.346/.580 with 22 home runs and 59 RBIs over 72 games, he was promoted to the

Syracuse Mets The Syracuse Mets are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A affiliate of the New York Mets. They are located in Syracuse, New York, and play their home games at NBT Bank Stadium, which open ...

of the Triple-A East in early September. Over 11 games with Syracuse, Vientos batted .278 with three home runs. On November 19, 2021, the Mets selected Vientos' contract and added him to the 40-man roster. He returned to Syracuse to begin the 2022 season. In early June, he was placed on the injured list with knee discomfort, but returned just a little over a week later. He was selected to represent the Mets at the 2022

All-Star Futures Game The All-Star Futures Game is an annual baseball exhibition game hosted by Major League Baseball (MLB) in conjunction with the mid-summer MLB All-Star Game. A team of American League-affiliated prospects competes against a team of National League ...

alongside Francisco Álvarez. Over 101 games with Syracuse, he slashed .280/.358/.519 with 24 home runs and 72 RBIs. On September 10, 2022, the Mets promoted Vientos to the major leagues. He made his MLB debut the next night at Marlins Park versus the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

as the team's designated hitter, going hitless over five

at-bat In baseball, an at bat (AB) or time at bat is a batter's turn batting against a pitcher. An at bat is different from a plate appearance. A batter is credited with a plate appearance regardless of what happens during their turn at bat, but a bat ...

s with two strikeouts as the Mets won 9-3. On September 15, Vientos recorded his first major-league hit, a single off of Eric Stout of the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

. On September 24, Vientos hit his first career home run off of

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

starter

Ken Waldichuk Kenneth Dieter Waldichuk (born January 21, 1998) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB). Amateur career Waldichuk attended University City High School in San Diego, California. He ...

. Prior to the

2023 World Baseball Classic The 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC), an international professional baseball tournament, is set to be the fifth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. It was originally set for 2021 (as per tradition to hold the event every four years), but wa ...

, it was initially reported that Vientos would play for the Nicaragua national baseball team. Vientos ultimately did not appear on the team's roster, however. Vientos was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse to begin the 2023 season. Through May 16, 2023, Vientos had 13 home runs and an on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of 1.104. On May 17, the Mets promoted Vientos to the major leagues in an effort to spark their struggling offense. He started at third base that night and hit a game-tying home run in the seventh inning.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vientos, Mark 1999 births Living people American sportspeople of Dominican Republic descent Sportspeople from Pembroke Pines, Florida Baseball players from Broward County, Florida American Heritage School (Florida) alumni Major League Baseball third basemen New York Mets players Gulf Coast Mets players Kingsport Mets players Columbia Fireflies players Binghamton Rumble Ponies players Syracuse Mets players American people of Nicaraguan descent Sportspeople of Nicaraguan descent Major League Baseball designated hitters