1-30-12 - http://www.amazinavenue.com/2012/1/30/2757346/2012-amazin-avenue-top-50-mets-prospects-21-30
- SS Wilfredo
Tovar - Tovar actually dropped one spot from last year's list, though
due to no fault of his own. This was another case of the previously mentioned
influx of talent into the organization. Otherwise, Tovar was perfectly fine in
2011, heading back to Savannah and once again showing off the skills that put
him on the map last season. Specifically the plus defensive abilities at
shortstop, the excellent contact skills as well as an improving eye at the
plate. Now he didn't make huge strides in any one area and he's still not
hitting for any power, but he was solid across the board in 2011. His average
dipped a bit compared to his .281 mark in 44 games with Savannah last season,
but it was mostly due to a slight drop in BABIP (.271). As an added bonus,
Tovar made a surprise appearance in the AFL and shined, showing off the kind of
power in about 100 at bats that we've never seen from him before. In fact, he
ranked second in the entire league in doubles, trailing only league MVP and
Rockies top prospect Nolan Arenado. Yes, the AFL is an offense-friendly
environment but that's exactly the kind of gap-power you want to see Tovar
develop in the coming years. I'm always a big fan of Tovar as one of only a
handful of prospects in this system with a true major league plus skill at his
disposal right this minute (defense). And in my view there's no reason why he
can't become a player very much like Ruben Tejada, just a little slower/less
aggressive on the development curve.
Kirk Nieuwenhuis was
rewarded for his torrid campaign by jumping into the top ten Mets prospect list
in 2011, as well as earning a Spring Training invite. He was on pace to join
the big league club in September, but surgery to repair a shoulder injury
prevented him from coming up. The question is, does he have a chance to
recapture his form in 2012? Apparently Minor League Ball believes so. Having
ascended four spots from last year, its obvious that the Mets have faith in him
and hope he'll either crack the Opening Day roster, or be promoted early. Given
the success of the Mets last outfield prospect, Lucas Duda—who has developed
into somewhat of a power hitter, albeit with some defensive quirks—it would be
nice to see Nieuwenhuis provide the contact that we have desired from Jason Bay
since he signed a four year, $66 million deal, as well as the glove we need. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1044894-baseball-prospect-profile-and-2012-outlook-mets-outfielder-kirk-nieuwenhuis
•Nov 17: C Vinny Rottino -
Like most of the guys on this list, the 31-yr old hasn't done much at the major
league level, batting just .194 in 39 major league pa's. However, at the minor
league level he has a more impressive .294/.363/.421 career triple-slash. In
2007, he ranked in the top 20 of John Sickels' Brewers Top Prospects list and
in 2009 he was the starting catcher for Team Italy in the WBC under the
tutelage of hitting coach Mike Piazza. This spring he'll contend with numerous
other righty backstops for the role of Thole's understudy. http://www.amazinavenue.com/2012/1/31/2753903/taking-inventory-of-the-mets-minor-league-free-agents
In 2008, Scott Hairston struggled to get on base but most
definitely hit for power, belting 17 home runs in only 362 plate appearances.
Through the first half of 2009, he was getting on base at a much better clip
while improving upon his power numbers, and the Padres traded him to the
Oakland A’s in July. In his brief time with Oakland, Hairston was pretty awful
with the bat, and after the 2009 season, the A’s traded him back to the Padres.
His 2010 season was mediocre at the plate at best, but the one thing Hairston
maintained was his ability to hit home runs. When he finally hit free agency at
the end of the year, the Mets signed him to be a fourth-outfielder type for the
2011 season. Although Hairston had always been a part-time player in the big
leagues, the Mets only used him for 145 plate appearances last year. Despite
the limited playing time, Hairston managed to hit 7 home runs – one home run
approximately every 21 plate appearances. One quirky thing about the season was
the Hairston raked against right-handed pitching and didn’t do so well against
left-handed pitchers, the opposite of his career splits, but that can be
chalked up to the tiny amount of data on the year. On top of producing with the
bat, Hairston appeared in all three outfield positions, and he looked like a
capable if unspectacular defender at all of them. http://www.amazinavenue.com/2012/1/31/2761508/2012-mets-player-profile-scott-hairston
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