Pictured above is former bonus baby Adrian Hernandez, who has not done well at all, with 412 at bats in total, and .216, since 2018. Still 22, but is he finished? Dunno. Overworked? No sir.
But it is nice when other DSL and FCL players are quick to jump out of the gate, and my focus today is largely on young, currently successful, lower minors Mets hitting prospects.
Lots of times, Mets players in the Dominican summer league (DSL) and Florida complex league (FCL) don’t do particularly well. An annual complaint of mine. Maybe of yours, too.
The conversation usually goes like this with my brother Steve Brennan:
“Hey Steve, you asked about how those DSL and FCL hitters did? Don’t ask.”
Steve: “Typical Mets, they can’t develop anybody.”
2023, however, thankfully and clearly seem to be an exception to that rule.
I count more than 10 hitters who caught my attention, in a good way.
Steve is more skeptical than I am:
“OK. But tell me how they do next year. Where’s our Juan Soto?”
Nowhere. Soto naturally is in pinstripes.
But I look at those 10 hitters and, for a change, I’m excited.
Let me lay out below some of the guys who impressed me at those two levels in 2023.
If I ranked them in my Top 35 Prospects, I list the rank # as a point of reference.
If a guy got promoted past the FCL up to St Lucie for more than a cup of coffee, I am not mentioning them here - they graduated.
Here goes:
26. Julio Zayas - C, age 17, in the DSL, Zayas flat-out raked. 46 G, 166 AB, 7 HR, 42 RBI, .295/.351/.506, just 22 Ks. RBI Guy. One RBI Guy Tomas Nido is most likely jealous. What a performer Zayas was at his age in 2023. How will it translate stateside in 2024? We'll find out.
28. Jeffry Rosa - OF - led the entire DSL in HRs at age 18. And the DSL is no 6 team league, folks - there are 50 teams in the DSL. And he only played 44 of his team's 54 games! Imagine if he played all 54.
In just 148 AB, 15 HRs (what a rate!), 39 RBI, .277/.400/.669, 46 K. He may or may not be as successful at higher levels, but anyone with that HR rate is in my Top 35.
30. Anthony Baptist - DSL - CF: In 27 G, at age 17, 105 AB, 2 HR, 16 RBI, .276/.426/.476, 29 K, 12 SB. Big bonus speedster. He missed games but came on stronger at the end. Maybe, of all the DSL guys I have listed, he will turn out to be the best. And...the Baptists I knoq are great people.
31. Heriberto Rincon - CF - DSL: As a 17 year old, 43 G, 148 AB, 1 HR, 20 RBI, .318/.408/.400, 33 K, 16 SB. Speed and on base skills seem strong. Ditto on the "we'll see how he does stateside in 2024."
32. Jeremy Rodriguez, SS in DSL, post-trade (Tommy Pham deal):
8 G, 24 AB, 9 RBI, .458/.583/.708, 3 K, in Mets' DSL. Wow!
The 17 year old stole 19 bases in 51 games in 2023, with a .411 OBP. Well thought of. Including by me.
CF Willy Fanas hit a decent .248/.316/.423 in the FCL at age 19. We’ll see if he can pick it up at age 20, presumably in St Lucie next year. That jump can sometimes be tough. 1B Yohairo Cuevas played 23 games in 2023 in the FCL, where he hit a fine .310, but in St Lucie after his promotion, he hit just .215.
Branny de Oleo, DSL SS - 18 year old, 6’1”, 156 righty bat. 44 G, 159 AB, 3 HR, 25 RBI, .302/.387/.472, just 17 Ks, 6 SB. I like the low Ks. 2024 beckons. Prove your ability stateside then.
Jostyn Almonte RF DSL, 5’11”, 195, but he turns an "aging 21" in May 2024. 41 G, 135 AB, 6 HR, 27 RBI, .311/.427/.526, 36 K, 13 SB. Again, are great DSL stats a mirage? They weren’t for former Mets star prospect Andres Gimenez. They were, though, for high-whiffing slugger Vicente Lupo who ripped up the DSL several years ago. We'll see how Almonte does stateside in 2024, and I'll rank him in the top 35 later if he excels.
In this organization, mediocre may get you to the majors for a while if you are a pitcher, but it won't if you are a hitter.
Too few slots exist for hitters in the majors. Ya got excel with the stick in yer hands to make it.
Ronald Hernandez most probably belonged in my top 35.
In fact, in retrospect, he darned well DID belong in my top 35.
Mea culpa. Mea maxima culpa. (I took Latin classes in High School with lovable Joseph Quintavalle, an elderly gent who also taught Latin a dozen or so years earlier to former famous (infamous?) Regis HS alumnus Anthony Fauci, whose favorite Latin word is VIRUS, but I digress).
Back to Hernandez: to translate that Latin in today's colloquial terms, "My bad. My extremely bad".
He in fact had a fine year, with a tasty cup of coffee late in the season with St Lucie. .274/.452/.434 in 53 games, with 53 walks and 50 Ks. Clearly intent on learning the strike zone. And 43 RBIs in 168 official ABs! WOW!
The switch hitting catcher, who played 2023 as a 18 year old on the FCL level, was solid catching defensively, and sprinkled in a little first base. Listed at just 5’11”, 155, so how will he do at 175-185 in the future? Likely quite well. Perhaps really well.
He was also acquired in the David Robertson trade.
Good trade. (Now - just sign Robertson back, please).
Hey, should Hernandez thrive in 2024, it might even make the Mets willing to consider trading Kevin Parada, but let’s not get way ahead of ourselves.
As if catchers Zayas and Hernandez weren’t enough, one more catcher to comment on:
Chris Suero: 19 year old catcher (5’10, 205 righty bat) played just 22 games in the FCL, but hit a fine .281/.422/.469 in obviously limited at bats. It seemed he got hurt, as he played just one game after July 27. Just one error, and threw out 9 of 33 base stealers, so he will interesting to watch in 2024.
Moving on from catchers:
Jesus Baez was ranked by the Mets…but he hit just .210 in the FCL in 138 at bats; he had a decent OBP, and was not bad on Ks, and he’s just 18. But .210 isn’t .310, if you catch my drift. Will he explode at age 19? Hope so, don’t you?
Before I go, I need to keep reminding myself that Simon Juan, who struggled in the DSL in 2022 and in the FCL in 2023, won’t turn 19 until mid-July of 2024.
In just 40 FCL games in 2023, Juan hit just .220/.293/.303.
In his 2 seasons, the bonus baby hasn’t caused us to forget another Juan, YANKEES SUPERSTAR Juan Soto, who reached the majors in a big way at age 19. Simon Juan in 333 pro at bats in 2022 and 2023 has hit a sub-par .219 with 4 HRs and 40 RBIs, and could be close to turning from prospect to suspect.
But, maybe he will explode in 2024, and justify his bonus dollars.
FCL PITCHERS?
None really jumped out at me - sorry.
Maybe one or more of them will stand out in 2024.
DSL PITCHERS?
Ditto. Not much to see, it seems. But you never know when the the the next Rafael Montero could climb out of the Mets’ DSL pile of pitchers that the two teams used.
Lucas Gordillo had a 1.21 ERA - but he’s 21, very old for the DSL, so will he prove to be able to make the stateside jump in 2024? You’ll have to wait until 2024 to find out. May he someday pitch like another Lucas, Lucas Giolito.
Adios, senors & senoras. No regression in 2024, only rapid progression, please.
Looking north, if the Mets don't start some real Queens progression, and soon, there might be Mets fan secession. Young, malleable minds might look at Judge and Soto and become fans for life of the storied franchise. And not life-long Queens Swamp Creatures.
But before I go...
I like the Wednesday trade of injured minors SP Coleman Crow (acquired in Escobar deal) to the Brew Crew for MLB veterans SP Adrian Houser and OF Tyrone Taylor.
Crow will miss 2024 after his 2nd half of 2023 TJS. He might be good and durable eventually - or not. My guess is if all goes well for him, he will need 2025 to get ready to be a big league starter in 2026m which is 3 seasons from today.
Houser (31-34 lifetime) seems to me like Dillon Gee II. I liked Gee.
Houser $$$...he is expected to cost just $5.5 million for 2024, too, then go free agent. Projected at a decent 8-7, 4.24 over 123 MLB innings next year by Baseball Reference.
Taylor with the Brewers has good power, albeit a little low on OBP, has never made a MLB outfield error in 330 games at all 3 slots, has decent speed, and should cost under $2 million in 2024 salary.
Seems like a fine righty hitting reserve outfielder who should play a lot. BB Ref projects his 2024 at .241, 15 HRs, 49 RBIs in 332 at bats.
This dual acquisition won't improve the Mets nearly enough to catch the Braves, but to get 2 MLB players like that for 2024 for $7.5 million in salary while trading an injured starter who may or may not pan out is a shrewd move.
I give this trade an A-.
And....
MICK THE QUICK
I loved Mickey back in 1961, although I rooted more for Roger.
I saw this Mickey missive on Facebook the other day:
"Maybe the most amazing Mantle stat of all. In 1961, Mick hit 54 homers and grounded into just "2" double plays for the entire season."
If we had two Mantles-in-his-prime right now, my guess is we could compete with the Braves.
WHO KNEW?
My musician-turned-aspiring-screenplay-writer brother Bob asked me whether the Cincinnati Pop Festival in 1970, at which the rock band Mountain played, occurred in Crosley Field, the former home of the Cincinnati Reds.
Judging by the picture he sent me, the answer back to him was yes.
I also googled Crosley Field and saw this deep tidbit:
A devastating flood hit Cincinnati in January 1937, flooding Crosley Field with 21 feet of water, leading to a massive cleanup of the ballpark.
TWENTY ONE FEET!!
Lastly, and totally non-baseball related, does anyone else think that embattled Harvard President Claudine Gay is actually the adult version of Urkel? Or is it just me?
The more I look at their two pictures....
You may be onto something with the adult Urkel comparison...though Jaleel White who played Urkel improved with age:
ReplyDeletehttps://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/JaleelWhiteDec10.jpg/1200px-JaleelWhiteDec10.jpg
First, an apology
ReplyDeleteMy upcoming Sunday post will be about DSL players that could be coming stateside this spring
Tom wrote about this subject and did a better job at it
I will be unable to schedule a new.one so just disregard mine
Tom, you didn’t even mention any Japanese starting pitchers. The more I think about it, the more I feel If the Mets sign “him”, then Alonso plays first base for them. If they don’t and go into punt formation, Alonso is traded.
ReplyDeleteRegarding the trade
ReplyDeleteCrow can't bite back until a year in rehab then three more in the chain.
That's a 2028 debut
Still, you now have two biting Crows
Remember what Poe said...
DON'T PISS OFF THE CROWS
past that, the Mets in return their probable SP5 and a defense minded utility outfielder with pop for around 63 cents in Cohen cash
A good deal
Great article Tom.. Help is on the way.
ReplyDeleteIMHO
ReplyDeleteThe reason Roger even got pitches to hit was because Mickey was hitting behind him.
Know who hit behind Mark McGwire? Nobody worth mentioning.
Know who hit behind Eddie Murray the year he batted in 100 runs for the Mets? Nobody worth mentioning in the entire lineup.
I came to appreciate Roger watching him play later for the Cardinals...a fine player.
As for Mickey, I get goose bumps just seeing videos of him hitting...and maybe the best interviewee and story teller I've ever seen.
Also goose bump hitters to watch: Strawberry and Kingman
Thank you for that ray of hope...much needed these days!
ReplyDeleteMr Stevens loves his spaghetti. Trades for a #5 starter and. Fourth OFer and we’re all Wow. Hope some of the spaghetti sticks.
ReplyDeleteMack, sorry about that - had the FCL/DSL portion of this article written several weeks ago.
ReplyDeletePaul, agreed, but I always think back to Wyatt Young hitting .370, and Kaczmarski, Mazeika and Muno hitting mid .350's in their rookie debuts and the latter 3 turned into a bunch of nothing. I am at least very high on the two Robertson acquirees, Vargas and Hernandez. Great trade there. The rest are intriguing, but if 2 or 3 of the rest also make it, that would amazing.
Nickel, that's a lot of goose bumps. I went to Yankee stadium once around 1964 and saw Mantle just tattoo a HR. More like a detonation. Too bad he stepped on that sewer and had drinking problems because he thought he'd die by 40, based on his family history. These days, he might have been the first $1 billion player..
No
DeleteMy fault
Thus my apology
Mack, I will be forlorn if the 2nd Crow is as successful as I expect Pete the Crow to be.
ReplyDeleteGus, I am with you there. It remains the Mets' fault for not extending Pete during or after 2021. Would have been much cheaper.
We are counting crows now
DeleteAs for Houser, thoughts of him pitching on the mound does make me throw up in my mouth sometimes (inside joke)
17 year old Jeremy Rodriguez was a beneficiary of sorts from the Coleman Crow trade-away. J Rod is now the # 30 Mets prospect on the Mets Top 30 Prospects site. He is now on the radar.
ReplyDelete