Paul Articulates - Baby Mets becoming Vets

The Baby Mets is a term that was coined to describe that first group of Mets prospects to hit the major leagues.  The term originally applied to Francisco Alvarez, Brett Baty, and Mark Vientos.  It is reasonable to expand that list with Ronny Mauricio who came up later, but is still in the “first crop” of prospects.

Although the 2023 season has been a huge cloud of disappointment for Mets fans, there has been a silver lining.  That is the opportunity for the Baby Mets to play almost every day.  The amount of game experience they have seen would not have occurred if the Mets were in a playoff race, as Buck Showalter has shown a bias towards veteran players when the pressure is on.  

Given the time to play through the daily grind, the group has found it to be a significant challenge.

Francisco Alvarez got off to a hot start, hitting 20 home runs by the end of July and playing superb defense that had everyone talking about him as a Rookie Of the Year candidate.  Unfortunately he cooled off quickly after that and has only had 3 HRs since and has also had several errors on over-aggressive throws to the bases.  As the cooler nights approach, he is beginning to warm up again, but is only slashing .215/.290/.439 so his ROY candidacy is over.  Though not all Mets fans agree, Alvarez is being limited to every other game now to reduce the wear and tear on his body in this longest season of his career.

Brett Baty also started strong, but regressed when pitchers found his weakness for those breaking balls down and in.  His very long swing is not adjusting well, and although a few weeks back in AAA helped perk up his hitting, his return to the majors was met with more struggles.  He may have to retool that swing over the off-season to retain his value to the club.  His defense has also been below average this season, as measured by a -4 Outs Above Average (OAA) and a -7 Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) to go with his .955 fielding percentage.  

Mark Vientos had a tough time finding playing time in his time with the big league club earlier this year.  However, as time progressed and other DH candidates failed to excel, Mark got his shot and has made the most of it.  Although his power has not quite made the jump, he has been solid in September, batting .275 in 14 games, including last night’s two home run performance, and a three hit performance back in the Reds series.

Ronny Mauricio finally stepped onto a MLB infield on September 1st.  He has not disappointed those who waited a long time for him to move up.  His first at-bat yielded a screaming 117mph line drive that was the hardest hit ball by a Met this year.  He has shown some power and some fielding promise at both 2B and 3B so far – probably enough to make Brett Baty worried.  Mauricio had a huge spring with the club and while some questioned the delay in moving him up, the extra work in the minors seems to have done wonders as he has transitioned very well.  In 16 games with the Mets, he has slashed .305/.359/.407 – best of the bunch.

There is tremendous value in the exposure this group has gotten so far.  Between the four of them, they have played in 284 games and logged 923 at-bats.  They have seen righties, lefties, and every shape of pitch imaginable.  Although they have not really torn it up, they have seen what they need to prepare themselves to perform at the major league level in 2024.  They are turning the corner from rookie to veteran and if they can deliver on their enormous talent it should be a windfall for the club.

Meanwhile, back on the farm there is another group of prospects coming up.  Call it the “second wave”, and it is looking like a Tsunami.  The Binghamton Rumble Ponies have assembled a “murderers row” of prospects and had them on full display Tuesday night in their first game of the Eastern League Playoffs.  They hammered out twelve hits, including a three-run blast by Jett Williams on the way to a 9-2 win against the Sommerset Yankees.  Yes, that is Jett Williams the 2022 first round draft pick that has already made his way up through the lower levels to star in a AA playoff game just 14 months after hearing his name called.  He joins a plethora of talent including LuisAngel Acuna, Drew Gilbert, Jeremiah Jackson, JT Schwartz, and some pitching that becomes more impressive each time out.  

There is a lot of young talent to watch in this Mets organization, and the debut of the Baby Mets is just the beginning!