MACK - MY Sunday Observations Report -

 

Good morning.

I wrote last week about a recent report on baseball scouting. I wanted to revisit something I had written about in the past regarding the need for the human touch in scouting that is quickly disappearing.

There was a baseball scout named Jim Reeves. No, not THAT Jim Reeves. This one was a late round draft pick that faded early and would up hanging out with scout friends in the Chicago area.

Reeves wound up getting a job with the Mets and was given a huge area that seemed to cover all the states no one else wanted to scout. Wyoming, the Badlands, you know, Tombstone territory.

He had three claims to fames for the Mets. Two were finding Mike Conforto and David Peterson. The third was a kid that lived in an area that had such harsh weather conditions that even his high school didn’t have a baseball team. The snow didn’t melt until well into summer. Reeves was told about a kid that was playing lights out in American Legion ball. He went to countless games this kid played in and eventually convinced the Mets to draft him in the first round.

The kid was Brandon Nimmo.

Now, Nimmo was no big secret to the scouting world. Most mock drafts had him in the top 50 picks. I had him going as a sup-1 pick after the first round. Still, my first article about him being picked this early was quite negative. Not at Nimmo, but at the Mets choice of someone who never even played high school ball and being picked in the first round.

Well, history has proved me wrong and I have no idea how a kid in the basement on a computer will ever be able to duplicate this kind of find again.

 

A lot of you can’t wait for Spring Training to start. Well, for some pitchers and catchers, they are already there ahead of… well… when pitchers and catchers report.

The Mets have a “Pitcher Development Camp” going on at their  fields in Port St. Lucie. The pitchers attending are Matt Allan, Noah Hall, Ethan Lantheir, Jonathan Pintaro, Brandon Sproat, Blade Tidwell, Will Watson, Nate Dohm, Dom Hamel, Nolan McLean, Jonathan Santucci, Zach Thornton, Jonah Tong, and Jack Wenniger.

Catchers were Matt O’Neill, Francisco Toledo, Vincent Perozo, and Julio Zayas.

The Mets seem to be taking this development seriously. That’s a good thing.

 

1-17-25 –

Joe Doyle                 @JoeDoyleMiLB

The New York Mets are favorites to sign 3B Josue Chacoa on January 15, 2026 when the next int’l period opens.

Bat carries profile. Chance for plus power. Above average arm strength. Average runner. 50+ glove. Comfortably a Top 10 player in the class at this stage.

 

1-17-25 –

Mike Mayer            @mikemayer22

Grayson Crawford announces he has been promoted to assistant pitching coordinator for the Mets.

Crawford spent last season as the Triple-A Syracuse Mets pitching coach. His first in the organization after coming from the Yankees.

 

1-17-25 –

Mets sign LHRP AJ Minter to a 2-year, $22mil contract (1/yr player opt out)

31/yrs old                6-0                  215

Drafted 2^nd round 2015 by Braves, out of TAMU

2024:             1.1-WAR, 5-4, 2.62, 1.01-WHIP, 39-APPS, 34.1-IP, 35-K

Had microfracture on his hip after he was suffering with hip and lower back discomfort. 4-seam fastball’s velo dropped from a high of 96.6 in 2022, to 94.5 last season. All reports are that the surgery was successful and Minter will be ready come spring training… oh yeah… both he and Edwin Diaz have an opt out after the 2025 season, so there is that… this makes for five premier relievers in the pen.  That's a good thing too. 

 

1-17-25 –

MLB Injury Risk and History – Catcher

Francisco Alvarez – New York Mets

2024: 100 games played, 308 at-bats, 342 plate appearances

Francisco Alvarez has made an impact on New York and their fans in his short time as a member of the Mets. After a successful 2023 season, the hope was that he could take that step forward and become one of baseball’s best catchers. What happened instead was a flurry of injuries that prevented that progression from ever happening. He suffered a torn ligament in his thumb early in the season and missed months after having surgery. As the year wore on, he missed games here and there due to a nagging shoulder and back, causing his momentum to be halted. He is still quite young with a brought future ahead of him, so this past season could be seen as a one-off, but it’s worth mentioning that he missed time in the Minor Leagues due to bumps and bruises, one of which resulted in ankle surgery.

To me, all of Alvy’s injuries have been in the bumps and grinds category and are not structural. All he has to do is duck a few more foul offs.

 

1-16-25 –

John Saponaro                    @johnsaponaro

Alonso in a nutshell

Pete is one of my favorites. I’ve defended Pete. I want Pete back. Months ago, when I thought his market would be different, I supported deals as long as 6-8 years to keep him. I still think {barring an unforeseen move} the best version of the Mets in 2025 has Pete on it. I also understand fans have favorite players, and I support that. I don’t care if you’re 8 or 80, everyone has guys they especially like to root for.

I’m also ferociously pro-player. These guys spend their lives becoming the top 1% of the top 1% of baseball players in the world. They have a finite amount of time to maximize their earning potential, they should always take every dollar they can get.

Pete doesn’t “owe the Mets anything.” And the Mets don’t owe him either. I don’t expect him to take less than he can get somewhere else to stay here. But I also don’t expect the Mets to bid against themselves, and ignore what the market is telling them, to keep him. The market ultimately dictates what a player is worth.

So far, the Mets have offered Alonso a very lucrative extension to stay here. He turned it down — as is his right — in order to test said market. It didn’t go his way. We know the Mets have made at least one other offer recently (according to Will Sammon & Ken Rosenthal). An offer that was also rejected. If Pete signs a deal better than either one of those with another team, good for him. To this point, there’s no indication something like that exists for him.

The Mets cannot wait forever. More importantly, how many times can you be told “no,” while seemingly no other offers are better than yours before you tire? Yes, Cohen is insanely rich, but you use that advantage to go all in on elite, young talent — Soto, Lindor, Yamamoto, etc. You don’t let someone else (a player’s agent, in this case) use that owner’s wealth to *their advantage* by forcing an against-market, unnecessary overpay. Especially not when your team is run by one of the brightest young executives in the sport.

Sometimes good players leave. Sometimes your favorite players leave. You can be bummed, but at the end of the day, you have to be a grown up and acknowledge what you’re seeing for what it is. Unless you are actually 8 years old, then it’s ok to be irrational.

I really don’t have anything more to say about this. Negotiating with Scott Boras is one step below Hamas. I’ll leave this to the grown-ups in the room.

 

1-16-25 –

Mike Puma              @NYPost_Mets

The Mets told Starling Marte last month they would try to trade him to a better situation, but at the same time could see a role for him if he stays. Even with Jesse Winker’s return Marte figures as a righty DH possibility. Right now no traction for a trade. Marte is owed $19M.

I have been preaching this for months. Keep the very loyal guy and, at lease, use him in a shared DH situation.

 

1-16-25 –

The Mets signed catcher Onix Vega to a minor league deal.

Onix Vega

26/years old           RHH               5-9                  200

20^th rd. draft pick 2018 – Broward College (FL) – Washington

6 year Nats system:          1,057-AB, 9-HR, 119-RBI, 208-K, .243

2024 A+/AA/AAA:            141-AB, 1-HR, 9-RBI, .213

Going into this deal, you had Jakson Reetz and Hayden Senger already assigned to Syracuse, with both Kevin Parada and Matt O’Neill projected to advance to that level. Maybe this is a need for the pitcher/catcher program or, who knows…

 

1-16-25 –

The Mets signed pitcher Pablo Medina

He is 6'6"He has never pitched in organized ball so maybe he doesn’t exist…

Hey... I don’t make this shit up.

 

 

1-16-25 –

Andy Martino         @martinonyc

The Mets are bringing back Jesse Winker, pending physical, league sources say.

            Joel Sherman          @Joelsherman1

The Mets and Jesse Winker are in agreement on a 1-yr. $8M contract.

The assumption here is the Mets decided Winker was the best out there for a utility outfielder. I agree, especially since they already know what he brings to the table.

 

1-16-25 –

Mike Puma              @NYPost_Mets

Ronny Mauricio is continuing his knee rehab, but it's possible he won't be ready for the start of spring training. Mets officials are taking it day by day with him.

            Daniel Wexler        @WexlerRules

Assuming Mauricio isn't ready for OD (it never seemed likely he would break camp with the team given his time off) I wonder what the plan is? Splitting 3b/2b in Syracuse with Baty with Baty seeing some time in LF (idea mentioned by Stearns)?

Sort of getting tired of this very slow rehab assignment. Makes me wonder if he is truly a top prospect anymore.

 

1-16-25 –  

Daniel Wexler        @WexlerRules

MLB Pipeline ranks Ryan Clifford #7 1B prospect in baseball Pete Alonso when he was in school. Last season, for Binghamton, he hit 24 home runs for three Hoston minor league affiliates in 2023, and 19 for two Mets affiliates last season. The problem is 160 strikeouts in 435 at-bats. Also needs to work on the batting average. He’s got a lot of work to do starting this spring. Oh. Also, a pretty decent corner outfielder.

            Here are the Top 10 first base prospects for 2025

            https://www.mlb.com/news/top-first-base-prospects-for-2025?partnerID=web_article-share

            The Top 10 (ETA)

1. Jac Caglianone, Royals (2026)

2. Bryce Eldridge, Giants (2026)

3. Nick Kurtz, Athletics (2026)

4. Xavier Isaac, Rays (2026)

5. Tre' Morgan, Rays (2026)

6. Josue Briceño, Tigers (2027)

7. Ryan Clifford, Mets (2026)

8. Ralphy Velazquez, Guardians (2027)

9. C.J. Kayfus, Guardians (2025)

10. Tyler Locklear, Mariners (2025)

 

1-16-25 –

What Happened to Brett Baty, Man?

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/what-happened-to-brett-baty-man/?s=03

Two years ago, Baty was the no. 23 overall prospect in baseball. And while circumstances have conspired to bump him around since his debut — a season-ending thumb injury in 2022, the emergence of Vientos as a rival for playing time — he has not made the most of what’s now an ample audition period. In 602 major league plate appearances in his career, Baty is hitting .215/.282/.325, which works out to a 72 wRC+. Sprinkle in average third base defense and you get a player who’s just about bulls-eye’d replacement level.

That won’t cut it for a team with championship ambitions.

Mike Puma of the New York Post reported in early December that the Mets were getting calls from teams interested in trading for the 25-year-old third baseman. Around the same time, Abbey Mastracco of the Daily News wrote that Baty was slated for a utility role. Both of those reports came before the Mets inked Soto to a record-setting 15-year contract, so maybe the internal calculus has changed since then, but I’m not sure how useful Baty would be, either as trade bait or as a utilityman.

I’m ordinarily a huge sucker for former top prospects who could probably use a change of scenery, but I’m struggling to find a reason to be optimistic about Baty. He’s fine at third base and has played a little left field, but he’s not exactly Matt Chapman in the field, and the sum total of his experience at anything approaching a premium defensive position is 27 Triple-A starts at second base.

And it’d be one thing if he were striking out a ton but hitting for huge power when he made contact. Or if he were ludicrously aggressive or passive at the plate. But he’s close to average in both chase rate and in-zone contact rate. He will draw a walk, but not to the level where his eye is a carrying tool. Baty walked 9.4% last year, and his career walk rate is 7.8%; major league average in 2024 was 8.2%.

The author here is right. One needs to ask themselves the hard question here… is Baty truly major league starter material? And, if he isn’t, is it worth the time and effort to try to teach him to play, at least, one more infield position, or do other players already know how to do that and qualify as utility players?

 

1-15-25 –

New York Mets                  @Mets

We have claimed RHP Austin Warren off waivers from San Francisco.

            Isaac              @isaacgroffman

Austin Warren features a 5-pitch mix from a lower arm slot. But he has struggled to get whiffs throughout his MLB career

Since 2021, he’s dropped his arm slot, enhancing the movement on his slider/sweeper, though the results haven’t followed yet

The deep arsenal offers upside

 

1-15-25 –

Here are the International players signed on 1-15:

SS        Elian Peña                Dominican Republic

IF         Giomar Ubiera        Dominican Republic

RHP    Yobanny Sanchez Dominican Republic

IF         Roni Garcia              Dominican Republic

C          Adrian Silva             Venezuela

IF         Jose Padilla              Venezuela

IF         Yorber Semprun    Venezuela

OF       Aiberson Blanco    Venezuela

RHP    Kleber Gamez         Venezuela

RHP    Jose Vielma             Venezuela

LHP     Pablo Medina         Dominican Republic

RHP    Darling Perez          Dominican Republic

OF       Jhonael Cuello        Dominican Republic

RHP    Olmedo Barria        Panama

Don’t look for much past the five million dollar man; however, I have heard good things about the righty Sanchez.

 

Jose Serracin 6/7/2008 C Panama

 

1-15-25 –

Thomas Nestico       @TJStats

Mets have a stud in Dedniel Núñez!

He unfortunately missed the end of 2024 season with a forearm injury, but prior to his absence he was a lock-down bullpen arm with an elite K-BB%. The depth on his slider makes it an elite whiff pitch, which he supplements with a plus fastball

the key to Nunez going forward is to not overwork him so he doesn’t hurt his arm again… and the key to that is finding at least two more one producing relievers to take the pressure off of overusing him. Let’s see what the rest of the off-season brings.

 

 

1-15-25 –

Today is international signing day: Here's what to know

Elian Pena

SS

17/yrs old       5' 10"      167

Scouting grades: Hit: 65 | Power: 50 | Run: 50 | Arm: 50 | Field: 60 | Overall: 60

Azua, Dominican Republic, located nearly 100 miles from the capital of the nation, Santo Domingo, has become a pipeline of talented players able to ply their craft against the best. While the city has recently churned out hitters such as Yainer Diaz, Maikel Franco and Esteury Ruiz, early expectations are that Pena could be the best of the group. Evaluators rave about his off-the-field makeup and in-game savvy, believing he has legitimate five-tool impact potential across the board. He trains in Santo Domingo East with Javier Rodríguez at La Alianza, a member of MLB’s Trainer Partnership Program.

Pena’s hit tool is his calling card. Equipped with oodles of bat speed from the left side, he complements his propensity to hit the ball hard with some of the most advanced plate discipline seen on the international scene in years. It’s rare for a prospect so young to have a keen eye for the zone, but Pena routinely puts it on display while spraying the ball to all fields when he does cut it loose. The power is expected to come on as he continues to mature and adapt to the routine of pro ball.

Top-tier defenders up the middle know that the foundation of playing shortstop starts with footwork. Pena has routinely shown the actions and feel for the position, adding in smooth hands that make it likely he sees the majority of his time there. Boasting a lean frame, Pena runs well among his age group and isn’t likely to be maxed out physically at a young age, leaving room for significant projection and upside.

 

1-14-25 –

Tim Healey     @timbhealey

 

Mets spring training dates…

* Pitchers and catchers report: Feb. 10

* P&C first workout: Feb. 12

* Full squad first workout: Feb. 17

* First exhibition game: Feb. 22

 

 

1-14-25 –

Mets Player Development         @MetsPlayerDev

Five Mets prospects were named to the Baseball Pro 2025 Top 101:

#39:  Brandon Sproat

#48:  Jett Williams

#71:  Carson Benge

#74:  Nolan McLean

#75:  Jonah Tong

 

1-14-25 –

Daniel Wexler        @WexlerRules

No obvious reason (player) to move Benge off of CF as of now (unless they feel he's unplayable out there). Morbito likely heads to AA, and outside of Ewing  nobody on the 2024 St. Lucie team who is both a legitimate prospect and a CFer

Agree with both the movement of Morbito and Benge playing center in Brooklyn. I expect Benge will be done with Binghamton by the end of the season. There are a lot of so called Mets centerfield prospects right now, but Benge may be the real deal.

 

 

1-12-25 –

Here's each club's top international prospect –

https://www.mlb.com/milb/news/each-team-s-top-international-prospect-2025?t=mlb-pipeline-coverage

Mets: Luisangel Acuña, SS

A former Top 100 prospect, the stock of Acuña – the younger brother of Braves superstar Ronald – dropped at Triple-A Syracuse last season when he chased outside the zone and put the ball on the ground too much, leading to a .258/.299/.355 line and 69 wRC+ in 131 games. But his stock was buoyed in a brief Major League spell as he exhibited electric speed and a good middle-infield glove while Francisco Lindor dealt with a back injury. Acuña still has age on his side and could be in line for second-base opportunities in 2025 if the bat turns around.

Someone on this site called me the unsalaried promotional director of Acuna. I’ll take that title in a heartbeat. I believe it will be quite foolish if the Mets don’t give this kid second base from the get-go. He’s a favorite in both the clubhouse and dugout, has proven he can put up mad defensive skills, and also has proven he can hit major league pitching. The only thing left to do is give him the base and worry about the rest of the positions. I welcome all major league writers to keep putting this kid to pen.

 

Jim Koenigsberger            @Jimfrombaseball

"Yogi, you are from St. Louis, we live in New Jersey, and you played ball in New York. If you go before I do, where would you like me to have you buried?"

Carmen Berra, Yogi's wife

"Surprise me."

Yogi Berra

 

Baseball Quotes                @BaseballQuotes1

You know, I was once named Minor League Player of the Year... unfortunately, I had been in the majors for two years at the time.

-Bob Uecker