Mike's Mets - With the Present on Hold, We Look to the Future

 

By Mike Steffanos

It was good news that negotiations between MLB and the Players Association resumed Sunday, but I fear we're still a considerable distance from playing major league ballgames this season. Still, the only way this will ever resolve is if the two sides continue talking to each other. Meanwhile, the only baseball being played in spring training camps is with minor leaguers who are not on the 40-man roster. Players on the 40-man, even if they haven't played an inning at the major league level, are still part of the MLBPA and are locked out along with major league ballplayers.

The bad news is that the prospects who are already on the 40-man roster are, of course, those closest to the major leagues. For the Mets, this means top position prospects Ronny Mauricio, Mark Vientos, Khalil Lee, and Nick Plummer can't work with team coaches and trainers until this lockout ends. Their development has basically halted. Ditto with young pitchers Jose Butto, Adam Oller, and Thomas Szapucki. Not to mention very young major leaguers such as Yennsy Díaz, Tylor Megill, and David Peterson, all of whom are far from fully developed. MLB clubs aren't just sticking it to the players and the fans by continuing their lockout. They're also hurting the future potential of some of their young players — the ones that they're counting on to become viable major leaguers soon. And don't forget many of these guys already lost a whole season of minor league baseball two years ago, thanks to the pandemic.

The good news is that the prospects who are in camp are undoubtedly benefitting from the extra attention they are receiving from team personnel who would be focusing primarily on major leaguers if this was an ordinary spring. We're not getting the volume of stories from training camp we see when MLB players are there, but a few items have trickled out. They offer hope for the future of the Mets once baseball returns.

Francisco Álvarez made an impression early on, introducing himself to reporters and finding an interpreter to facilitate interviews. It's cool that he's mature for a 20-year-old and understands that dealing with the media is a significant part of the job description for a New York professional ballplayer. More impressive is the way Francisco's prospect status continues to soar. The Mets' #1 prospect is also high on overall prospect rankings. He's 10th on MLB.com's Top 100 list, 7th on FanGraphs' list, and 8th in Keith Law's Top 100 at The Athletic.

Álvarez debuted in the states as a 17-year-old in 2019, playing 42 games combined in the Gulf Coast League and Appalachian League. His overall slash line was .312/.407/.510 — ridiculous numbers for a catcher who was one of those leagues' youngest players.

Álvarez worked out at the alternate site in Brooklyn in 2020 when the pandemic stopped all minor league baseball. While I'm sure he benefitted from being around some major leaguers and receiving superior coaching, it is important to note that he lost a whole season of playing in minor league games.

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