Tom Brennan: Re-Post of 2019 Kingsport Mets Recap

 

I thought it might be fun to re-post some old articles involving 2019 Mets minor leaguers, since 2020 is indefinitely delayed. 

Here is a repost of my Kingsport recap from last Sept...

The Kingsport Mets finished 34-34. 

How do I feel about that? 50-50.

Of course, the "dammed" Yanks (of Pulaski) had the best record of 42-26. Same old, same old.

The Metsies also missed the vaunted rookie league Appalachian League playoffs...bummer.

Anyway, the Mets soundly outhit the Yanks (.256 to .235) and scored almost 5 runs per game, and a .399 slug % is not shabby.

The K Mets' catcher trio led the offensive way:

1) Andres Regnault deserves the title of SLUGGER!  In 44 games, he had 49 RBIs, hitting .369 with RISP!!! And 11 doubles and 8 homers, while hitting .292. Include last season’s DSL stats, in 97 games, he has 94 RBIs, 28 doubles, 17 homers and hit over .300, while fanning just 69 times in those 97 games.  Next year should be exciting to watch for the slugger.

2) 17 year old Francisco Alvarez, after he briefly tore up the GCL and got quickly promoted, got into 35 K Mets games and hit .282/.377/.443, and .312/.407/.510 overall. Star in the making.

3) Wilfred Astudillo, like his Minny Twins brother Willians, strikes out little. He ended up at .267/.323/.408 for the year. (I love to look up Willian's numbers - as a major leaguer, he has 229 at bats, hitting .301, with a ultra-microscopic 4 walks and 8 Ks - simply freaky.  Nothing passes his bat).

Also solid with the stick was Scott Ota, 10th rounder, at .273/.355/.519 with 7 homers among his 26 extra base hits in 51 games.

First rounder Brett Baty, after a few excellent games in the GCL, struggled mightily at first in Kingsport, but surged at the end to jump to .222/.339/.447 as a K Met, and is now helping Brooklyn as they start their playoffs. Good stuff.

Greg Guerrero sadly was very disappointing at .222, but did smack 6 homers. However, the bonus baby will be 21 next year, a baby no longer, with a lot of ground to make up.

Lastly, the enigmatic Jaylen Palmer at SS, who managed to hit .260 with 7 homers despite a really high 108 Ks in just 62 games. The kid from Flushing has to fix the hole in his bat to have a bright future.  My advice?  Watch Jeff McNeil video to see what he does to avoid Ks.

PITCHING?  NOT AS GOOD.

The team ERA was high at a shade under 5.00 because, frankly, many guys (unnamed here) didn’t pitch well.

But some did pitch quite well:

Reliever Jefferson Escorcha did, going 7-1, 2.38, but having just 33 Ks in 41 IP is concerning, as it gets harder to miss bats at higher levels.

Undrafted Josh Hejka was great for 8 innings before pitching well in relief for the Cyclones, too.

I expected a Santos to do well in 2019 - Junior Santos.

Instead, Reyson Santos stepped up big, as a reliever - in 22 games, he fanned 28 in 22 innings, sported a 2.45 ERA, and saved 8 of 10. Recently promoted to Brooklyn, he added 5 Ks in his first two 2 scoreless innings.  Very nice job.

The other Santos, 17 year old Junior (actually turned 18 just before season's end) showed pinpoint control in 2018, but not so in 2019, when the 6'8" Junior was 0-5, 5.09, walking 25 in 41 innings while fanning 36.  He is a ranked Mets prospect, though, who I am confident will have a much better 2020.

23rd rounder Nick MacDonald spent most of his season with the K Mets, with a few innings each for Brooklyn and Columbia. Overall, his 2-0, 2.70, with 34 Ks in 23 innings is commendable. Onward and upward.

One guy who split his year almost evenly between Kingsport and Brooklyn was 22 year old righty Michel Otanez.  4-3, 3.14 in 14 starts with 70 Ks in 63 innings (pre-playoffs) was impressive. Keep it up in 2020, Michel.

So, overall, while the team finished at .500, there was a lot to like in individual performances from the aforementioned dudes, especially in the catchers department.  Kudos.