Good
morning.
Predicting
what minor player will be assigned to what team is not an exact science, but
you can rely on two things:
1. Players that play well at one level
will start the season at the next level up the ladder.
and…
2. Projected prospect stars, even if
they card out above par, will get another shot at either the same level they
played, or one up if management believes they can handle the promotion.
Last up… my
prediction for some of the players that will make the 2020 Syracuse Mets.
Remember…
this isn’t the whole team. It’s just the guys that I think that have locked up
a role here in Syracuse.
LHSP David Peterson – I, as
most Mets fans, expected a lot more from this guy that we are getting. We
expected Matt Harvey when we drafted this 6-4 righty, but I’m starting to
realize that me might have nothing more than another Mike Pelfrey. He also is
not the strikeout machine we had hoped to have here. 2020 will prove if
drafting Peterson was the right thing to do. At best, I now have him as an SP5
candidate.
RHSP Mickey Jannis – Jannis
will pitch 2020 as a 32/yr. old. I keep trying to write this guy off, but he
keeps coming back at me. He put up very good numbers this past season in
Binghamton: 20-G, 18-ST, 7-5, 3.10. He also had a taste in Syracuse (6.2-IP,
17-ER, 22.95-ERA) but he bounced back at the AA level. Every organization needs
a minimum of five starters on each team and the AAA teams are usually
overstocked with so-called AAAA pitchers. Jannis qualifies as one of these guys
on my team.
RHSP Harol Gonzalez – (eligible
for the 2020 Rule 5 Draft) – Harol will play 2020 as a 25/yr. old. The
up-again, down-again career of my friend is back on the up-swing. He went 12-4,
3.01, in 25 games (23 starts) for combined Binghamton and Syracuse, which
included 8 games and 7 starts for Syracuse, going 6-0, 2.68, 1.07. I think the
Mets are going to lose this guy in the Rule 5 Draft if they don't add him to the 40-man, If they don’t, he
will be the first call-up if a replacement starter is needed.
RHSP Corey Oswalt – Oswalt
will pitch 2020 as a 27/yr. old. I don’t have much to say about this guy who
disappointed me every time he came to Queens. Remarkable minor league pitching
followed by dud starts every time for the Mets. Two schools of thought here. If
he is to remain a starter, ink him in permanently as an AAAA pitcher, but… if
you move him to the pen, you have the chance to develop a great middle reliever a la Seth Lugo.
LHRP Blake Taylor – Taylor
will pitch 2020 as a 25/yr. old. Taylor came to the Mets as part of the Ike
Davis trade and it really paid off this past season. He went 2.63-ERA in 21
appearances for St. Lucie, followed up by 1.85-ERA in 18 appearances for
Binghamton. He combined for 74-K in 66.2-IP. The easiest promotion I have in
this series is sending this kid to Syracuse and we could see him in Queens by
mid-season.
RHRP Ryley Gilliam – Gilliam
will play 2020 as a 24/yr. old. Tough season in 2019 for Ryley. He shot out a
cannon in 2018 as a closer from Clemson, going 1.41, 1.15 in 17 outings for
Brooklyn in 2018. The Mets should have left him in St. Lucie in 2019 (7
outings, 2.53, 0.94) instead of kicking him straight to AA-Binghamton (12
outings, 4.34) and then AAA-Syracuse (10 outings, 13.50-ERA). He was finally
shut down with ‘dead arm’ for the season. Me? I would send him back to
Binghamton to get his game worked out but looks for another shot at Syracuse
this spring.
RHRP Stephen Villines – Villines
will play 2020 as a 25/yr. old. The Kansas grad impressed at Binghamton last
season (28 outings, 1.20, 1.07) but went all dud in Syracuse (13 outings, 6.75,
1.94). Still, we have to pitch him again at the AAA level to see if he can
right the ship. Remember… he also went 0.41 in 16 outings for St. Lucie in
2018.
RHRP Stephen Nogosek – Nogosek
will play 2020 as a 25/yr. old. This guy is really a walking puzzle. He has 34
combined outings last year for Binghamton and Syracuse, posting a ridiculous
stat line of 3-0, 0.36 (yes, 0.36), 0.95. That’s 2-ERs in 49-IP. It seemed like
the right thing to do was to send him to Queens. Results? 0-1, 10.80, 2.10,
8-ER in 6.2-IP. Nogosek, and the Mets, have to shake this off. Start him off
back in Syracuse and, if he shows the same kind of dominance he showed last
year at this year, send him to Flushing for the remainder of the year.
RHRP Ryder Ryan – Ryan will
pitch 2020 as a 25/yr. old. Ryan came to the Mets as a throw in after a cash
dump of Jay Bruce to Cleveland. He has worked his way up from Columbia and,
last year, posted a 3.05-ERA in 25 outings for Binghamton. He also had a
10.02-K/9 ratio. He’s a definite move to Syracuse next spring.
RHRP Matt Blackham - (eligible
for the 2020 Rule 5 Draft) – Blackham will pitch 2020 as a 27/yr. old. You all
know what a big fan most of the Mack’s Mets writers are about Matt. It was a
shame he didn’t get a 40-man promotion this past September, after mastering
Syracuse (12-outings, 2.60, 1.07). I am afraid that baseball is going to recognize
Blackham’s talents sooner than the Mets do and he is going to be lost in the
upcoming Rule 5 Draft. I look at some of the names of relievers on our current
40-man and it makes me sick to see their names their over Matt’s.
RHRP Adonis Uceta – Uceta will
play 2020 as a 26/yr. old. Another reliever that has earned his way to Syracuse
after a stellar year for Binghamton: 36-outings, 5-3, 1.44, 1.03, 7-SV, 56-IP,
55-K. He did throw one inning last year at the AAA level (5-IP, 33.75), but we
will give him a push on this.
RHRP Joseph Shaw - (eligible
for the 2020 Rule 5 Draft) – Shaw will play 2020 as a 26/yr. old. As a 25/yr.
old, Shaw pitched for three teams last year (A+/AA/AAA) and produced a stat
line of 31-outings, 3.36, 59-IP, 65-K). Very quietly, Shaw is moving closer to
Flushing.
RHRP Joseph Zanghi - (eligible
for the 2020 Rule 5 Draft) – Zanghi will play 2020 as a 25/yr. old. Zanghi made
his bones this past season in Binghamton (31-outings, 2.34, 1.21). He did
stumble late in the season in Syracuse (5-outings, 6.35), but most relief
pitchers do when they hit this level. I expect he will start off here in the
spring with Manhattan in his plans.
C Ali Sanchez - (eligible for
the 2020 Rule 5 Draft) – I love Sanchez’ defensive game, but it simply isn’t
enough to earn a starting gig. 2020 will once again feature Wilson Ramos (last
year of contract) and Tomas Nido. For now, he will battle Patrick Mazeika for
playtime unless Mazeika is played mostly on first.
2B Sam Haggerty – Haggerty
will play 2020 as a 26/yr. old. He was traded to the Mets in the Kevin Plawecki
deal. Blazing speed and good glove. Hit a combined .271 in 2019 for Brooklyn,
Binghamton, and Syracuse. Very little power. Another favorite of Tom Brennan.
Tom thinks he will open up with the Mets in the spring. He could be right, but
Haggerty’s role would only be as a utility player. I would rather let him play
every day in Syracuse as second base.
SS Andres Gimenez - (eligible
for the 2020 Rule 5 Draft) – Gimenez will play 2020 as a 22/yr. old. Once
again, Gimenez put up ‘fair’ numbers in 2019. Played the entire season and hit
.250 in 432 at-bats. The power he was projected to someday having is starting to eek out (9-HRs). This is the
year he needs to prove his worth. Above him, Amed Rosario played almost
All-Star ball in 2019 and below him, Ronny Mauricio is biting on his heels.
Step it up Andres and let’s make this interesting.
IF Luis Guillorme – I’ve come
to realize that there is nothing my boy Luis can do to get a starting gig in
Queens. I have him starting back in Syracuse because he has now become a AAAA
player that’s only chance of playing major league ball is when there is an
injury in Queens.
OF Quinn Brodey – Brodey will
play 2020 as a 24/yr. old. Brodey came to the Mets , out of Stanford, with a
big power bat reputation that is starting to show. He hit 13 home runs in 2018
for Columbia/St. Lucie, followed by 10 more this past season for St.
Lucie/Binghamton. Brodey’s big test begins in April 2020.
5 comments:
That is a great team pitching-wise for 2020 AAA if they are all down there.
I think Blake Taylor and Ryley Gilliam have excellent chances to become mainstays in the Mets pen starting pretty early in 2020.
David Peterson compared to Mike Pelfrey? He isn't proving he is going to even be Mike Pelfrey yet.
Can Harol keep over-achieving?
Will Matt Blackham succeed if he gets to Queens? He has been on the slow boat sailing towards the majors, probably due to his control.
Jannis could pull ab RA Dickey yet - 32 is young for a knuckle dragger. Maybe he is (after Jake) the Mets next Cy Young winner.
I hope they also fill Syracuse with veterans like they did this year. This can prevent younger players being called to the bigs too soon. The veterans can also be great mentors to the young players. I especially hope Danny Espinosa and Rajai Davis are among the ones coming back.
I see Guillorme serving as a utility player for the Mets. Right now there is no other back up option to play all infield positions.
Mets have too many infielders and need a good center fielder. An old fashioned baseball trade where you give up strength to fill a weakness would make sense.
I agree that AAA should be a staging area for veteran reinforcements, much like it was last year. Yes, you should also have prospects that are close to breaking through, but depth is important.
Is it just me? Every time I see Harol's name, I want to add a D to the end. Catches my eye every time.......
Post a Comment