AHH, CATCHERS: GROTE, PIAZZA, HUNDLEY, STEARNS
Of course, before my article, great game last night, folks.
Now:
Good catchers are hard to come by, people.
Now:
Good catchers are hard to come by, people.
The Mets, though, currently have lots of catchers with at least some exhibited promise in the minors. Surely some will see future major league action, and maybe, just maybe, there is a star (or two) in this bunch.
Let's go level by level, mentioning ones of interest to me:
AAA
Rene Rivera is old, baseball-wise, but he is hitting with more power than any catcher in the system (24 homers and 70 RBIs in a little over 300 at bats). He surely appears to deserve a September 1 (or sooner) call up, and if the Mets fall out of contention, release him and let him land with a contender.
Ali Sanchez, recently promoted to AA, has hit pretty well this year (.275/.337/.336), and at age 22 is a great defensive catcher, too.
AA
Pat Mazeika has hit well, with good pop, in a tough Eastern League hitters' environment, and thrown out 39% of runners. His lefty bat could be majors-bound in late 2019 or more likely in 2020. Splits his time at 1B.
Hi A
No one is hitting well at catcher - and former 6th round defensive whiz with what was described at draft time as having a questionable bat, Nick Meyer, is hitting under .200.
A
Hayden Senger has had 2 frigid stretches, separated by a scalding stretch that last about a month mid-season. Hitting .242 overall, the hope is he can be more scalding than frigid going forward.
NY PENN
Some fairly decent offensive performances from catchers, but none eye-catching. Jose Mena (22) and Jake Ortega (23, and a 29th rounder this year) are both hitting around .270 in a total of 119 at bats - too early to detect a positive or negative pattern for them.
Appalachian Rookie League
17 year old bonus baby Francisco Alvarez and 19 year old Will Astudillo are both having excellent seasons with the stick.
Maybe they will be the Mets' # 1 and # 2 catchers in about 4 years. Time, and the headwinds of climbing higher in the organization, will tell.
Gulf Coast League
19 year old Endy Rodriguez has split time between the GCL and DSL and hit better in the GCL. In just 22 games (why so few, who knows?), he has been stellar: .309/.442/.529, with 12 BBs vs. 10 Ks in over 80 plate appearances. He is a 6'0", 170 switch hitter. AND he's thrown out a sweet 26 of 58 (44%) so far in his career.
So far, so fine for Endy, a name many Mets fans have fondness for after the Endy Chavez catch of catches.
You want to discuss this? Catch up to me sometime.
Tom, sorry to be redundant but another great post. Saw Jake Ortega catch two games as I sat right behind home plate. First, he is a lefty hitting catcher. Those are hard to come by. He has a good bat. Too soon to rate his catching skills but he will get better as he learns the pitchers he works with and professional routine.
ReplyDeleteAlso see that you did not include our recent AA acquisition, Mr. Bossart. He hit three homers against Binghamton one week, traded to them two weeks later. We will see how he progresses.
Also, the Villalobos kid they recently signed in the DSL
ReplyDeleteGood points on Bossart (how soon I forgot, but he wasn't hitting so well) and Villalobos.
ReplyDeleteOf them all, in 5 years, I see Alvarez and Astudillo as the "A" team.
Don't forget Andres Regaunalt, all 250 pounds of him.
ReplyDeleteRivera will be a big help to the Mets if they call him up in September.
ReplyDelete