Mets add Villar on big league deal (report)

Infielder Jonathan Villar has agreed to a Major League deal with the Mets, a source told MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo on Tuesday.

The club has not confirmed the deal, which is worth $3.55 million plus incentives, MLB Network insider Jon Heyman reported.

Villar, 29, hit .232 in 52 games last year for the Marlins and Blue Jays, having been traded to Toronto on Aug. 31. His 16 stolen bases ranked second in the Majors behind the Royals’ Adalberto Mondesi. He’s a career .259/.327/.400 hitter with 218 steals over eight big league seasons. He led the Majors with 62 steals in 2016 while playing for the Brewers. 

A switch-hitter, Villar can be a power-speed threat — he hit 24 home runs with 40 stolen bases for the Orioles in 2019, and he hit 19 homers to go along with his 62 steals in ’16. From 2016-19, he posted four straight seasons with 10-plus home runs and 20-plus stolen bases. He and Trea Turner were the only two players to do so.

Villar is also versatile defensively, playing both second base and shortstop regularly over the last few seasons, along with a few games in center field and some early-career experience at third base. A utility player like Luis Guillorme, he should add even more to the Mets’ infield depth, whether by backing up Francisco Lindor at short or mixing in with Jeff McNeil at second.