The Mack Report – Applying the “2012 Plan” to The Mets Minors

Okay, let’s get back to something I know about, the Mets minor league system.


We’re going to do something together here for the next couple of weeks.


We’re going to take the current Mets under contract to play next year in the minor leagues and apply them to a new board, we will call “The 2012 Plan”. I made reference to this in yesterday’s Mack Report… a plan I believe that the new Mets management will apply to every decision made from now on.


The plan: “Does what I’m about to do make sense in 2012.


You all know I have “The Keepers”, which is, in my opinion, the top 100 Mets prospects in their system. What you and I are going to do is start with number one, and place each one of these guys on the team that would best suit their needs in 2011, plus the location that makes sense in their growth. A perfect example of this would be Jenrry Mejia. Everyone wants him in Queens because of the exiting of Hisanori Takahashi, but you and both know he should play another year in Buffalo (again, what is the right thing to do in 2011, to make sense in 2012).


Ages listed are the age the player will play by the end of the 2011 season.


Today we will cover the top 5:




Michael G. Baron

 1. Jenrry Mejia – 21/yrs. old - we talked about Mejia in the above paragraph. We all would love to see him start in Queens, but he just turned 21 less than a month ago. Let him start off in Buffalo and we’ll see how it goes.


2012 Plan: Middle of Mets rotation


2011 placement: Front of Buffalo’s rotation








Michael G. Baron

 2. Wilmer Flores – 20/yrs. old - second name and already a challenge. Flores played Savannah and St. Lucie in 2010 and played both well. Normally, we would move him on to Binghamton, but it also has to be considered that his future as a Met probably is either at third base or in one of the corner outfield positions. I would at first glance hold him back in St. Lucie and play him at third, but he’s being pushed by both Jenry Marte and Aderlin Rodriquez. Then again, sending him to Binghamton to play third speeds up his ETA process to be ready for a position that is blocked by David Wright. Lastly, all reports say he is too slow for either corner positions in the outfield.


2012 Plan: Heighten his desirability in a trade


2011 placement: St. Lucie, convert to third base.

3. Reese Havens – 24/yrs. old – yes, I know he’s injured, but I expect him to be back at 100% by spring training. I may be wrong about this, but I am going under the assumption that a muscle strain can be cured in six months. Havens is making the conversion to a second baseman and he is still slotted as the number one Mets prospect for that position. At 24, he is ready.


2012 Plan: Mets second baseman


2011 placement: Buffalo’s second baseman

4. Matt Harvey – 22/yrs. old – Harvey still isn’t officially listed by www.milb.com as being on any minor league roster. I know there were reports that he tossed the ball around in armups during the instruction leagues, but I saw no reports that he pitched. Is he for real? Does he exist? Is he related to Sid Finch? I just can’t see him starting below St. Lucie in the spring and I have his ETA in Queens being in 2013.


2012 Plan: SP1 in Buffalo


2011 placement: SP1 in St. Lucie





Allan Greene

 5. Aderlin Rodriguez – 19/yrs. old – A-Rod was aces for Kingsport in 2010 and got his feet wet at the end of the season for Savannah. He’ll go back there in the spring, playing third base, but many Mets pundits and scounts think he will project better as a corner outfielder or first baseman. Not the best speed here, but maybe the best pure bat in the Mets system. There’s no reach to rush this kid, but his bat will demand promotions.


2012 Plan: Either 3B or OF in Binghamton


2011placement: 3B in Savannah; 3B in St. Lucie after ASG



So…


Here’s what our rosters look like so far for the 2011 season, based on 2012 need:


Buffalo: Rotation: (1) - SP Jenrry Mejia


Relievers: (0) –


Catchers: (0) -


Infielders: (1) – 2B Reese Havens


Outfielders: (0) –






Binghamton: Rotation: (0) –


Relievers: (0) –


Catchers: (0) -


Infielders (1) – 3B, Wilmer Flores


Outfielders (0) -





St. Lucie: Rotation (1) – SP Matt Harvey


Relievers (0) –


Catchers (0) –


Infielders (0) –


Outfielders (0) –


Savannah: Rotation: (0) –


Relievers: (0) –


Catchers: (0) -


Infielders: (1) – 3B Aderlin Rodriquez


Outfielders: (0)


                                                           - - - - - -

Ex-Mets Minor League Free Agents:


1B Carlos Degado, Andy Tracy


RHP Jason Isringhausen, Brian Lawrence, Claudio Vargas, Yusmeiro Petit, Lance Broadway, Steven Register


LHP Willie Collazo




Mack Ade

 OF Jeremy Reed, Sean Henry, Prentice Redman, Timo Perez, Wily Mo Pena, Endy Chavez


2B Argenis Reyes, Kazuo Matsui, Chase Lambin


3B Ruben Gotay, Shawn Bowman