METS TOP 50 PROSPECTS: #'S 36-40 - Tom Brennan

TOP PROSPECTS

METS TOP 50 PROSPECTS: #'S 36 THRU 40 - Tom Brennan

Hey, before I resume on my Top 50 prospects, how about my Top 25....the NY Mets squad that decimated the Utley pathetic Dodgers. Utley, Utley pathetic.  Hats off to Grandy, Cespedes, D'Arnaud, Flores, Harvey....and Tejada.   We even got Eric Goeddel's bad outing out of him, with no harm done.

Now, back to my minor 50...a minor league system that in 2015 promoted several, traded many, had several prospects run into the Tommy John buzzsaw, and saw a few guys go from prospect to suspect.  Leaving a diminished, but still solid, minor league system prospect-wise. 

(See website sidebar for the list of my #41-50 dudes, covered in prior articles.)

Today, here’s my #36 thru #40: 

36.              DAVID THOMPSON: hey, the basketball player of the same name from the 1970’s was a first round pick, and I loved his 48" vertical leap. This David Thompson was only a 3^rd round pick for the Mets in 2015, and no doubt has less than a 48" vertical.  He also had quite a disappointing year in 2015 (just .218/.268/.320 in 59 games as a 21 year old), albeit on a highly offensively challenged Cyclones team, which surely did not help.  I’ll bet the hitters for Brooklyn were pressing more than your local dry cleaners.  Let’s see if that was just an adjustment period for Thompson and whether he rebounds with a top season in 2016 - or if it was a bad pick.  We need to remember that Cory Vaughn hit much better in his time in Brooklyn a few years back and has sputtered at higher levels.

37.              MILTON RAMOS: One of the Mets’ treasure trove of shortstops, along with Reynolds, Cecchini, Rosario, Guillorme, and Carpio, Milton Ramos started slowly in 2015, but the 2014 3^rd round pick of the Mets really turned it on later in 2015 and ended up hitting .317/.341/.415 for Kingsport in 43 games.  Only 3 of 9 in steals, so speed does not seem to be his forte.  He made 11 errors in those 43 games so that needs attention, too, but he only turns 20 just before Halloween so he has plenty of time in that regard.  Turning 20 this October, he is listed at a smallish 5’11”, 160, but he showed enough that he may shoot way up this list in 2016.

38.              JOSH SMOKER: some guys travel an easy road to the bigs - not Josh. This 31st overall pick in the 2007 draft by the Nats had big time shoulder issues requiring multiple surgeries, and ended up out of minor league baseball for the better part of 3 years.  But he got the high heat back, Mets signed him, and after a brief struggle in Savannah at the start of this year, Smoker pitched very well in relief for St Lucie and Binghamton.  Met coaching helped him make a few adjustments to improve his control, and he struck out 60 in 49 innings.  Last I looked, Mets are not overstocked with lefty relievers, so maybe the 28 year old will make the Mets some time in 2016. The bullpen has many non-smokers and needs the type of high octane balance that a heavy Smoker can bring.

39.              ALEX PALSHA: this 2014 27^th round righty draftee had a splendid year for Brooklyn in relief (0.38 ERA, only one blown save) but then sputtered a bit in a late, short promotion to St Lucie.  The combination of that sputter and his (low) 27^th round pick status and the fact that he turns 24 next May pushed him well down the list.  I thought long and hard as to whether his superior performance warranted him a rank as high as # 39 on my list.

40.              DASH WINNINGHAM: I probably should have Dash higher on my list.  Probably much higher. As a 19 year old slugging 1B in Kingsport in his 2^nd minor league season, he had 19 doubles, a triple and a league-lead-tying 12 homers, plus 51 RBIs in 66 games.  He did strike out 63 times in 66 games, so I am leaving him at #40 for now, but I want him in the top 10 this time next year.  A break out 2016 will do that.  Definitely heading for a full season league as a 20 year old, IMO.



That is it for today.  Hope your own prospects are good and improving, dear reader.