John from Albany - The Alternative 50 Mets Prospects, Numbers 50-46.

First a disclaimer: In putting this list together, I gave more credit to players I have seen play.  I also have tried to highlight players that others have not put on their lists, especially Tom and Mack.  Some may be a surprise.  Hence, I refrained from using the word “Top Prospects”.  If a player has shown flashes or excels in one area, and no one else is talking about them, they might have made the list over others that show up on all the other lists.  Hopefully, it will give awareness to some of the “other guys” in the Mets minors.  With prospects, you never know.  For every sure thing there are the Jeff McNeils of the world that go from unknown to All-Star.  With that in mind I start with -

#50: Braxton Lee – Center Fielder, Bats Left, Throws Right.  Braxton, the Mets December 2018 Minor League Rule 5 pick from the Marlins, turned 26 in August.  Last year, he showed excellent skill in centerfield including a great arm.  Splitting time last year between Binghamton and Syracuse, he hit a combined .271 with a .342 on base average and a .357 slugging percentage.  For his career, he only has played 8 games in the majors, going 3 for 17 for the Marlins in 2018.  In this day and age where players now strikeout more than get hits, Braxton has more career minor league hits, 568, to career minor league strikeouts, 422 (believe it or not, that is rarer than it should be).  That, and his defense, puts him on my list.  He will probably be the starting centerfielder in Syracuse, and should there be an injury or injuries in Flushing, an option to come up and contribute. 

Here is Braxton’s FANGRAPHS page.

Braxton was interviewed regarding making the 2019 Eastern League All Star game along with other Binghamton Rumble Ponies players in this video clip.

#49: Antoine Duplantis – Left Fielder, Bats Left, Throws Left.  2019 12th round draft pick from Louisiana State; Antoine played mostly left field and led off for Brooklyn hitting .237 BA, .286 OBP, .294 SLG, 20 RBIs, 5 SBs, 46 hits, 12 walks, 31 Ks.  He has good speed and runs the bases well, as I saw him go first to third in a game when the defense was shifted and third base was not covered, later scoring on a wild pitch.  He tripled in the tying run and scored the winning run in Brooklyn’s championship game.  A good defender, Antoine had 153 putouts, 16 assists, and just one error. 

Here is video of Antoine Duplantis making a great catch last year.

Here is Antoine’ FANGRAPHS page.

#48: Frank Valentino – Right Handed Starting Pitcher.  The Mets signed the West Islip native in 2019 as a non-drafted free agent.  After graduating from the New York Institute of Technology, Frank pitched in the Pacific Association in 2018 and went 4-3 with a 2.10 ERA in eight starts in 2019 for Florence in the Frontier League. Frank made 11 starts for Brooklyn last year but none bigger was the last game of the regular season against the Staten Island Yankees.  With first place and a playoff appearance on the line, Frank pitched 5.1 innings giving up just one hit, two walks, and one run, with 9 strikeouts.  For the year, Frank was 2-4, with 63 Ks and 13 walks in 58 innings with a 3.41 ERA. What I like most about Frank?  His low walks per 9 innings, 2.02; his Ks per 9 innings, 9.78; and low Home Runs per 9 innings, just 0.47. 

Here is video of Frank discussing his first start with the Cyclones.

Here is Frank’s FANGRAPHS page.

#47: Ranfy Adon, B-R/T-R; Outfield; Signed out of the Dominican in October 2014, Ranfy was one of the fastest players on a fast Brooklyn team last year.  Ranfy stole 11 bases while playing all three outfield positions.  If Ranfy did not start the game, he would be the first player off the bench to pinch run.  Ranfy had a big homerun and the walk-off double to give the Cyclones a 4-3 win in the deciding game against Hudson Valley in the first playoff round. Then in the first game of the Championship series, with a man on first and the game tied 0-0, Ranfy doubled in the eighth to put runners on second and third.  The two runners scored on sacrifice flies as Brooklyn won that game 2-1. In the regular season Ranfy hit .270, with two homers and 13 RBIs.  Though his numbers haven’t shown it yet, Ranfy has speed and power, and is fun to watch.  This is the type of player I look forward to seeing when I go to a game.  I hope he continues to develop. 

Here is Ranfy Adon’s FANGRAPHS page.

#46: Joe Genord – B-R/T-R; 2019 9^th round draft pick from South Florida; First Base.  Joe led the Brooklyn Cyclones team with 44 RBIs (third in league) and 9 HRs (tied for fifth in league).  Joe struggled getting hits at home, hitting just .140 in Brooklyn while .266 on the road for a .206 total average.  Joe has tremendous power.  I saw him pull a ball down the left field line in Troy that had to go close to 450 feet in about five seconds.  A bullet.  Joe hit 5 home runs the first three weeks of the season and was hitting over .300.  Then pitchers figured out that you can’t throw him a fastball anywhere near the inside part of the plate.  From then on it was lots of off-speed pitches on the outside of the plate.  Through it all, Joe still had the ability to drive in runs even when he made outs.  He had six sacrifice flies.  In the first playoff game, Joe hit a pop up to the infield that the Hudson Valley catcher did not handle.  Genord never stopped running and wound up on second base later scoring on a single. Sorry, this day and age, plays like this make a player stand out.  Remember former number one Mets Prospect Fernando Martinez hitting a pop-up that landed in fair territory as he watched it fall and was tagged out?  It is his hustle, his power, and his ability to get runs home on outs that puts Joe on this list for me. 

Here is Joe’s FANGRAPHS page.

Here is video of Joe talking about getting to Brooklyn and being drafted.