Positional Strength Prior to Draft:

1B: - Actually, the Mets are in pretty damn good shape here. You have one current star (and potential superstar), Ike Davis, that should be around for quite awhile; however, you have prospect Lucas Duda that can step in anytime to hold the fort down. You also have Daniel Murphy, who has proven he can hold his own on the bag, and Allan Dykstra, heir apparent to the AAA infield. I wish every position was as solid as this one. Grade: A


2B: - The Mets still need to develop a full time second baseman. Reese Havens has the talent, but has been injured too many times to bank on him. Past Havens, the system is lean. I would address this in the 3rd round if either Javier Baez, Levi Michael or Josh Tobias are still on the board. If not, Ryan Wright would be a good 4th rounder. Grade: C




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 SS – Some assumptions have to be made here. One, Jose Reyes will be gone, and, two, Ruben Tejada inherits the job. Tejada has the defensive skills to be around for years, but so did Rey Ordonez. Robbie Shields projects as a AAA-injury replacement player and Wilmer Flores continues to show he may stick as a shortstop. The system could use two more names here, and Christian Lopes would be a great 5th or 6th rounder. Grade: B


3B – Another assumption… Wright remains a Met. That being said, the system is stocked with secondary prospects. Josh Satin, Zach Lutz, and Michael Fisher all offer you secondary alternatives at the AAA level. Jefry Marte and Aderlin Rodriguez have first string tools, but reek in the infield. There’s plenty of depth here if Wright remains a Met. Long range prospect: Elvis Sanchez in the DSL. Grade: B


C – Dual problem here. One, there is no one in the system that currently projects out as a major league starter, and two, and everyone in this draft is either all bat, or all glove and arm. Still, I wouldn’t be surprised if the Mets don’t use three of their top ten picks to cover this position. I really have no one to recommend here and I promised not to mention again that the Mets screwed up last year by not drafting Yasmani Grandal. Grade: F

OF: The 2012 and beyond Mets need full time star outfielders. Carlos Beltran will be gone sometime this year, Jason Bay has been a bust, and Angel Pagan isn’t a locked to be renewed after this season. Organizationally, they are fully stocked with 4th outfielder, including Duda, Fernando Martinez, and Kirk Nieuwenhuis at the AAA level. Beyond that, Cory Vaughn, Cesar Puello and Matt den Dekker show promise, but none have that classic big bat. Boy, do the Mets need one and, trust me, they’d jump at a trade deal that includes a Bryce Brentz, or George Springer (1st round), Josh Bell (2nd round) or Brandon Nimmo (3rd round) in the draft. Grade: C+


RHP: This is the Mets deepest position in the organization. There are three (Matt Harvey, Jenrry Mejia, Jeurys Famila) prospects that currently project as successful rotational pitchers. That’s a lot at one time folks and they all are scheduled to graduate by OD-2013. These three, plus Mike Pelfrey and Jon Niese make for a pretty damn good future rotation. Add a first round pick this year like Archie Bradley or Matt Barnes, and you’re talking top of the league. Grade: A


LHP: Niese has turned out to be a pretty decent middle of the rotation lefty, but, let’s face it, the system could use another prospect here. It’s not going to be Robert Carson and the next guy worth talking about, Juan Urbina, is years from ready. The Mets may use their first round pick here with either TCU’s Matt Purke or high schooler Daniel Norris (Jed Bradley and Danny Hultzen look to be gone before the Mets pick).The 6-4 Purke is a risk, but he is potentially the top pitcher in the draft. Past that, look for another lefty picked in the first five rounds. Grade: D