2025, as a season, was a season that can be qualified as a mixed bag for Luisangel Acuña, in the most generous of terms. Acuña, who was acquired from the Texas Rangers for Max Scherzer during the Great
Sell-off of 2023, was a divisive prospect at the time, despite his clear Top 100 stature by both Pipeline and Baseball Prospectus. While no one doubted his defensive acumen and his ability on the base paths, the bat was an open question. It was unclear at the time if he would hit enough to be a starter, or if the bat would force him into a defensive utility role, and 2025 did some work to answer those questions.
Over 95 games (193 plate appearances), Acuña was a bad hitter, to be straight up with you. He hit .234/.293/.274 (65 wRC+), which is far from what you want. According to his Baseball Savant page, he hit 141 balls in play, and barreled up just two of them. His average exit velocity was a mere 87.9 miles per hour (he did hit a ball 110 miles per hour, so he can hit the ball hard, it just does not really happen often). This is just not the profile of someone who can reliably hit the ball at the Major League level.
However, he does bring skills to the table that make his future more interesting than anyone wants to admit. He is a strong defender at multiple positions, mostly second base, shortstop and third base. He started playing center field at a higher rate this year, and has played center field a lot in the Venezuelan Winter League (17 games in center vs 23 games at shortstop), which tells you a lot of how the Mets view him. He is an excellent base runner, and his 29.6 feet per second sprint speed is 97th percentile, which makes him one of the fastest players in the sport.
This whole mixture makes his outlook for 2026 confusing. The bat can be unplayably bad, but with the adoption of the designated hitter in the National League, you can hide a player like this on your bench, using them almost exclusively for their glove and legs. He is also still a young player, turning 24 years old in March of next year — which means you can either try and fix the bat yourself, or see if a team can convince themselves they can do it and trade him away.
While, personally, it is hard to see how Acuña goes from this to a regular starter because of the offensive deficiencies, he could prove to be a useful last player on your bench as David Stearns continues to rebuild the roster.
