Brett Baty didn’t have to be here. Under different circumstances, he certainly would not be. Late last month, the Mets demoted Baty to Triple-A Syracuse, in a move that was largely based on merit. The team had a roster crunch.

Since then, Baty’s batting .325 (13-for-40) with a 1.172 OPS behind eight extra-base hits, five home runs, and 11 RBIs. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza discussed how his young infielder has been able to turn things around,