Mets Prospect Profile: IF Wilfredo Lara

This is the next post in a series intended to bring awareness to some of the lesser-known prospects in the Mets' organization  This series will post a different prospect each weekday at 11:00am EST for the benefit of our fans.

With Jett Williams and Ronny Mauricio grabbing most of the media attention for New York Mets middle infielder prospects, it's understandable that others in the system working on the dirt part of the playing field are not obtaining the same level of accolades.  

Dominican utility man Wilfredo Lara would fit this characterization.  He's played at third base, center field and right field as he tries to add versatility to his performance resume while attempting to get promoted for what he can do with his bat and his legs.  Over the 2021 through 2023 seasons he's accumulated roughly a full season worth of playing time with 584 ABs which resulted in 17 HRs, 75 RBIs and 28 SBs.  

The somewhat glaring flaw in his stat sheet would appear to be his batting average which is a mediocre .248 for that period.  He has a good eye which is giving him 101 points higher in the OBP metric while also showing decent numbers of OPS and slugging.  

As you delve into his performance there is most definitely some good news to be found there.  After hitting just .208 and .235 in his first two minor league seasons, he spent all of 2023 at Port St. Lucie and the average climbed to .262.  That is three years with steady increases in making contact, a sign of progress you very much like to see.  

During three years he did accumulate 149 strikeouts which is somewhat expected for a power hitting player, but again if you look at the progress in this number of his three-year reign in the Mets organization he is showing a 25% rate of whiffing.  That's not good but it's not as bad as many other players deliver either.  As his batting average increase the fanning rate stayed the same.  Perhaps he is going to be able to cut down on that metric as he faces stronger competition.  

You would think that while still a teenager he will be assigned to start this coming season in Brooklyn at the next step up in A ball to see if he responds with more progress.  Right now he doesn't appear to have the overall across-the-board stats to suggest he will be an All Star level player when he makes the majors, but showing stronger plate discipline, good power and excellent speed while also demonstrating the ability to play around the diamond all suggest he's a guy worth watching as he keeps working to improve his game.  

It will be especially interesting to see how his power responds during this ascent as he's a somewhat skinny 5'10" player who does not boast the physique of a traditional power hitter.  

In a recent player ranking list of Mets minor league prospects they have Lara positioned at number 24 out of 37 ballplayers evaluated.  While that does not sound particularly good, he's actually slated higher than Grant Hartwig, Tyler Stuart, Bryce Montes de Oca and Christian Scott.  It would seem his potential is not really fully known yet but the signs of progress each of the three seasons in the organization means he's likely a viable contender for a major league job as he matures.