Mike's Mets - This Kid May Have Something

 

By Mike Steffanos

Although he didn't receive much fanfare before this season, Mets prospect Junior Tilien is making himself someone to watch going forward.

I don't normally write about prospects at this site. It's not that I don't care. I actually spend as much time as I can following the exploits of New York Mets prospects. I'm checking daily to keep up with the latest exploits of Mets farmhands like Francisco Álvarez, Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, and Ronny Mauricio. I look forward to the day when top pitching prospect Matt Allan returns after undergoing Tommy John surgery in May 2021.

I even keep an eye on bullpen prospects such as Michel Otañez and Bryce Montes de Oca, whom I mentioned earlier this month. Both are hard throwers who enjoyed some success in AA Binghamton, earned promotions to AAA Syracuse, and have struggled a bit at their new level. If they can solve Triple-A hitters, their next step would be showing up in the Mets bullpen, trying to get major league hitters out.

Highly-ranked kids like Álvarez receive most of the attention, and rightfully so. They have the potential to be stars. Baseball clubs are built around their best players. But it's still a huge win when a club can take less-heralded players and make contributing major leaguers out of them. It will be a huge developmental win for the Mets organization if Otañez, Montes de Oca, or another hard-throwing kid could follow the lead of Colin Holderman and Stephen Nogosek and can contribute to the big league team.

I don't write about prospects more often because I lack the skills to evaluate kids. I depend on the knowledge of others to keep up with the doings down on the farm. I eagerly read about Álvarez raking, then falling into a slump, and then working his way out — a vital part of the development process. Enjoying success and overcoming adversity prepares kids for just how hard it is to succeed in the majors.

From the knowledge imparted by others, I pay attention to certain details. Is Mauricio learning to be patient at the plate? Hmm, not really. He's only walked 11 times in 223 PA.

Is Baty hitting the ball in the air more? One limiting factor for him in his young career is that Baty hits the ball on the ground too often. From the information at FanGraphs, Baty has hit more balls in the air this season, which is good, but his strikeout rate has gone up also, which is not good.

There is a lot of information available these days for those of us who wish to peek behind the scenes a bit more. Right now, it seems to me that Baty and Mauricio have a lot of work to conquer Double-A, much less make it all the way to the majors. Meanwhile, Álvarez may be forcing the Mets to at least consider a September promotion to Queens. I honestly love this stuff.

I spend a lot of time reading prospect rankings and what experts have to say. On kids like Álvarez, Baty, Vientos, and Mauricio, there is a ton of info out there. Every once in a while, however, I find myself getting interested in a kid who hasn't received a ton of virtual ink yet. Recently, a kid named Junior Tilien has captured my attention.

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