Mack’s Morning Report – 6-22 – 2018 IF RP, Michael Paez, Mid-Season Promotions

Good morning.

So, where do we stand with ‘my’ 2018 Mets –

            SP: (5) – Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Zack Wheeler, Steven Matz, Lucas Giolito

            RP (4) – Jeurys Familia, Seth Lugo, Robert Gsellman, Jerry Blevens

            1B (1) - Eric Hosmer/Dominic Smith

            IF (3) – Manny Machado, Amed Rosario, Wilmer Flores

            OF (5) – Michael Conforto, Yoenes Cespedes, J.D. Martinez/Jay Bruce, Juan Lagares, Brandon Nimmo/Victor Cruzado

            C (2) – Jonathan Lucroy/Carson Kelly/Travis d’Arnaud, Rene Rivera

Total players: 20 – 5 to go… 2 infielders… 3 more relief pitchers.

I’ve decided since starting this series of posts that Wilmer Flores (SS, 3B, 1B) will be the starting second baseman on my 2018 team. This leaves me looking for two utility infielders that can play multiple positions. It also limits me to choosing, at the point, only players from within my pipeline. That’s not a problem, only a limitation.

Our choices are:

-T. J. Rivera – (1B, 2B, SS, 3B, RF, LF)I’m sold on Rivera as a 2018 utility infielder, but no more. I also think the blush is off the rose a little here, but he can play all four infield positions and, in a pinch, both corner outfielders. He has made my 2018 25-man squad.

-Gavin Cecchini – (SS, 3B, 2B) Let me word this carefully… I now feel that drafting Cecchini with a number one draft pick was the wrong thing to do. Now, after having such a bad AAA season so far this season, I’m not sure he’s anything more than a AAAA player. The best I will offer him is a utility position on the Mets bench.

-Matt Reynolds – I’ve met Matt. He’s a nice guy. I would cut him loose and give him the opportunity to hook up with another team that could offer him more major league at-bats than I would.

-Astrubel Cabrera – yes, Cabrera is a viable option at second base, and can play a credible third, but I would thank him for his service, put the money I would have spent here back in the kitty for one of the other names I have written about here, and go with a continuing youth movement, especially in the infield.

            -Jose Reyes – please…

            -Neil Walker – Thanks, but no thanks.

            -David Wright – This is so sad. I’ll take the $10mil+ offered by the insurance company and offer David a job in the organization, starting with bench coach.

This fills my openings in the infield, leaving three more relief pitchers to go.

As for relief pitchers, I never speculate on the last openings. No one would have any idea how the team would fill these slots at this point. I will say this… if we can’t dump Matt Harvey in an off-season trade, I’d put him in the 2018 pen as a middle reliever.

That’s my 2018 team.

If you have one, send it to me at macksmets@gmail and I will post it up on the site.

Michael Paez –

            This might be a name we have to start to remember.

I never heard of Paez in college and I even live close to the school he went to (Coastal Carolina). And, I definitely didn’t follow him when he finished up playing for Brooklyn last season (179-AB, .190). Yes, he had a nice junior season in school (15-HR, 51-RBI, .519-Slug%, 881-OPS) but I still though it was a stretch to draft him in the 4^th round.

Then came this season in Columbia. So far (through 6-17), Paez has put up a stat line of 220-AB, .282/.376/.505/881. I’m especially impressed with the 8-HRs and 43-RBIs he’s compiled so far this season. That’s only three ribbies away from leading the league! He also does lead the league with 21 doubles.

Yes, he has 10 errors, what middle infielder at this level doesn’t have this degree of hiccups?

It was announced last night that Paez was promoted to St. Lucie after the
all-star game.

There really is no one standing I his way to make it to Queens for the start of the 2019 season.

Mid-Season Promotions –

           We’ve reached the end of the first half seasons for all of the full season minor league teams, which means movement of the players that have produced more than their clubhouse mates have will be promoted to the next level.

           Actually, this already started earlier this month with the promotion of SP Chris Flexen from St. Lucie to Binghamton… though, because of past injuries that slowed down his progress, many considered his Lucy sting to be like a rehab assignment.

           All of this promotion stuff usually starts using the cream rises to the top theory. So, with that…

A: Columbia –

          SP Jordan Humphreys was promoted last night.

It’s only a matter of time that the other member of the ‘dynamic duo’. SP Merandy Gonzalez , follows him to Florida.  There is nothing left for either of these kids to do in South Carolina.

Any promotion of 1B Dash Winningham would be tied to Dominic Smith being sent to Queens from Vegas. This would create an opening for Matt Oberste to fill for the 51’s and Peter Alonzo to be sent to Binghamton. This could all be blocked if Alonso isn’t moved, who really is still coming back from a broken hand.

As I mented earlier, 2B Michael Paez was promoted last night.

It seems to me that the first Firefly reliever to leave the nest will be Adonis Uceta. He’s got an ERA below 2, a WHIP below 1, and a K/9 above 9. That’s what you need to get promoted.

A+ - St. Lucie –

           A case could be made for 3B Jhoan Urena, but that would take a promotion of David Thompson from Binghamton to Las Vegas and I just don’t see that happening.

           What I do expect is C-1B Patrick Mazeika and splitting time at first and behind the Binghamton plate.

           The only St. Lucie starter that could move soon would be Nabil Crismatt.

           My pick for the first pen guy to move here – Kevin Canelon

AA – Binghamton –

So much of what happens in New York State is dependent on what happens in Vegas, and the Mets have proven time again that what happens there never stays there.

Honestly, I don’t see any of the prospects here (P.J. Conlon, Corey Oswalt, Flexen, Marcos Molina) moving up at this point. Oswalt is on the DL, Molina and Flexen are just getting going at this level, and Conlon’s season hasn’t warranted a promotion.

I don’t see any reason that Kevin Taylor shouldn’t be promoted to Vegas.

Three relievers have already moved up… I’d leave it at that.