1/17/23

The Mack Report (Oviedo, Alvy, De La Cruz, ARB, WBC)


The Mets have another Latin catcher coming across the waters to be assigned this spring to a stateside team.

 

Carlos Oviedo is 18, so I expect his first assignment will be the FCL-Mets. Oviedo’s 2022 stats with the DSL Mets were: 127-AB, 2-HR, 21-RBI, .268/.358/.775. Respectable and above average for a DSL player.

 


Here is a picture of our current top prospect and brute catcher, Francisco Alvarez. The little guy in the pic is Alvy. The giant is Oviedo. 

I always caution falling in love with DSL players. Many of the great ones turned out to be nothing and many of the meh ones blossomed as their careers developed. I have no idea what category Oviedo will fall into but, staring at the picture, it does tend to make you dream.


MLB.com put together a list of each team’s top International prospects and the Mets was quite obvious: 

Mets: Francisco Álvarez, C (No. 1/MLB No. 1)

Even when we update our Top 100 list in a few weeks, you can expect that Álvarez will be the top internationally-signed prospect in our rankings. The 21-year-old backstop’s power is arguably the best in the Minors, as he’s shown with 51 homers over his last two Minor League seasons despite being one of the youngest players everywhere he’s played over that span. His loud contact helps him maintain a healthy average too.  The defense is still a work in progress -- work that wasn’t helped by last year’s right ankle injury -- but at his height, Álvarez could be a top-three offensive catcher in the game, if not top one.

  

The New York Mets finalyzed the James McCann trade by accepting OF Luis De La Cruz from the Baltimore Orioles. The 20-year old LHH 6-2 DLC put up decent numbers for the DSL Orioles last season, hitting .252, 1-HR, 19-RBI, .405-OBP. 

Register Batting

Year

Age

AgeDif

Tm

Lg

Lev

Aff

G

PA

AB

R

H

2B

3B

HR

RBI

SB

CS

BB

SO

BA

OBP

SLG

OPS

TB

GDP

HBP

SH

SF

IBB

2021

18

0.1

Orioles 1

DOSL

FRk

BAL

27

94

69

14

14

2

0

1

7

0

1

22

19

.203

.415

.275

.690

19

2

3

0

0

0

2022

19

1.2

Orioles Black

DOSL

FRk

BAL

33

101

86

9

25

5

0

0

12

3

2

10

17

.291

.396

.349

.745

30

0

5

0

0

0

All Levels (2 Seasons)

 

 

 

60

195

155

23

39

7

0

1

19

3

3

32

36

.252

.405

.316

.721

49

2

8

0

0

0

 My hope here is either one of the Mets DSL coaches, or one of the scouts, saw something in this kid during 2022. Either way, the removal of McCann from the roster and allowing a pathway for Alvarez would make a trade for a baseball from the Dead Ball Era worth while. 

 

1B Pete Alonso, RHP Drew Smith, C Tomás Nido, LHP Joey Lucchesi, IF Luis Guillorme, RHP Jeff Brigham, and RHP Elieser Hernández, signed one year deals this week and avoided arbitration. It amazes me that the Mets can’t come to terms with Pete for a long term extension. There is no one on this team that is more Met.


Found something interesting on Twitter this week. 2023 will bring a return of the World Baseball Classic, where players go play for their home country team against the best of the world. Well, the Mets have a ton of players all leaving to play in this classic and basically will be unavailable for the majority of spring training. 

This includes the entire starting Mets infield of Pete Alonso, Jeff McNeil, Francisco Lindor, and Eduardo Escobar. 

Attention prospect watchers. This will be your time to watch guys like, Brett Baty on third, Ronny Mauricio play second, and possibly, Kevin Parada behind the plate. 

7 comments:

Tom Brennan said...

The WBC is an extraordinary opportunity for our hitting prospects. You don’t make the OD roster, can’t say you didn’t have a chance. That even should trickle down to Jett Williams, Alex Ramirez, Jose Peroza and Wyatt Young getting some ABs and exposure.

It reminds me of the movie Warrior, in which Tommy is in the gym when the number 2 guy in the world has just burned through his last available sparring partner, and Tommy says, I’ll keep your boy warm for you. They agree, as they have no one else. He then goes into the ring and totally destroys the number 2 guy. When you get the chance, you never know what may happen.

Tom Brennan said...

Alvarez has such an explosive swing, like a guy who throw 102 when most can’t get close. We need that 102 in Citifield.

Luis Cruz…I hope he spent the winter pumping weights. At 6’2”, he has the height to add the muscle.

D J said...

Mac,
I am sure we are looking 4-5 years in the future, but I think we can add 2023 International draftee Daiverson Guiterrea to our catcher prospects. Advance words on him are very encouraging.

Mack Ade said...

I think the Mets did well here

No big names but 4 excellent top prospects

Gary Seagren said...

This spring will be a huge opportunity for the kids to play but everyone will be holding their breaths none of our big guys get hurt cause frankly I think the risk is way to high but I don't make the rules. One significant injury could cost us dearly in the toughest division in baseball so cross your fingers. Big question to all: in my opinion Alvy should be given a real chance to make the opening day roster because with the DH his AB's are important as we need the power and as far as his defense he'll learn more at the major league level and remember he can always be sent down and at 20 he's got plenty of time to get up to speed. As the #1 prospect in the minors let the kid play and I'm sure he won't miss the Syracuse weather in April/May which is crazy to begin with and another injury waiting to happen. I'll always have the picture in my mind of Harvey pitching in the snow in Buffalo in a televised game when he was in the minors and wonder if some of his issues weren't a result long and short term.

Tom Brennan said...

Garym thankfully ,it is our hitters mostly going to WBC, right? Pitchers rushing to ramp up makes me more nervous

Alvarez belongs in Queens

Tom Brennan said...

Mack, for me, I would rather reach for the highest star than multiple good prospects. But Alvarez, Mauricio, Rosario, Ramirez and Gimenez were all non-elite picks (elite being the biggest bonus guys) and they've done quite well there, so I am open to seeing the success of that approach.