MACK - MY SUNDAY OBSERVATIONS. - Jonah Tong, Nolan McLean, Bobby Valentine, Benny Agbayani, Jett Williams, Yogi Berra, Elian Pena

 

Morning Thoughts 

I’m starting to get much more comfortable with Mark Vientos being in the nightly lineup. My only question at this point is what position to play him.

I know of Steve Cohen’s desire to get his team below the luxury tax penalty levels and this plan would be much easier to achieve if Vientos became the everyday first baseman beginning next season. Sure, he’s not going to match Pete Alonso’s home run numbers, but he is going to hit them in the respectful 20-30 range. This will allow Brett Baty to establish himself as the everyday third baseman.

The Cohen family loves Pete, but I don’t see any way this team could get under the $244mil established level, as agreed to by the owners and players in their last collective bargaining agreement.

 

As for second base, Jett Williams is just not producing in AAA-Syracuse at levels that make one believe he will be ready to start 2026 in Queens at second base. In addition, Carson Benge is hitting at a snail’s pace in Syracuse also. This makes me feel that the safest approach on opening day 2026 would be to play Jeff McNeil in center and let LuisAngel Acuna and Ronny Mauricio duke it out at second. Reinforcements are coming… Williams, Benge, AJ Ewing, Nick Morabito… it’s just that none look to be ready next spring at opening day.

 

Is Ryan Clifford a future Mets first baseman? Well, the question you have to ask is if he looks to be more talented than Vientos. If not first, what about DH? He has hit 27 home runs this season at the combined AA/AAA level. Lastly, will he ever hit .250 at the major league level? As Yoda would say, “this, I think not”.

 

The question is not where Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea fit into the Mets 2026 plans. They will firmly be part of the OD rotation with Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong, and Brandon Sproat. No, the question is where does Clay Holmes, Tylor Megill, and a returned Christian Scott fit in next season. My guess is the Mets will return to a 5-man rotation next spring, which makes things even more questionable for these three. Another guess of mine would be Scott starting off as SP1 for AAA-Syracuse, so he can get his strength back. Holmes hasn’t done enough wrong to be returned to the pen, where is where Megill’s future lies.

So, Jonah Tong’s second Mets outing turned out to be something we all hope is his worst this season. To me, he got in trouble early hitting the zone. Once batters know you are reaching, they can then sit on the pitch a pitcher normally throws when in trouble during a count. This was accomplished by the Reds’ bats, who sent three into the stands in six innings. Let’s see how he adjusts his next outing.

Pitch Profiler        @pitchprofiler

The Mets are doing something fascinating with their young pitchers.

Nolan McLean. Jonah Tong. Brandon Sproat.

 

All three already throw pitches that move differently than expected. And the movement patterns in these charts tell the story.

This is the common thread. The Mets aren’t just collecting arms.

Their development staff is creating pitches that move in ways hitters don’t anticipate. Unexpected movement is becoming their calling card.

Mets' 2 star pitching prospects have unique -- and elite – stuff

https://www.mlb.com/mets/news/jonah-tong-nolan-mclean-unique-pitchers-elite-stuff

Together, Jonah Tong and Nolan McLean cover every point on the compass.

 

The Mets' two phenoms are opposites in how they pitch. But in the New York rotation, they complement each other perfectly. Tong and McLean pitch in all four directions: Tong, north and south; McLean, east and west.

It's a testament to the Mets' pitching lab that the team has developed two star pitching prospects who both have outlier stuff while preserving their unique styles.

"I think that's the cool part about the Mets organization as a whole: It's just their ability to develop completely opposite sides of the spectrum," McLean said. "It's cool that they're able to not cookie-cutter everybody, and give us tons of options for our arsenal."

Tong and McLean are both suddenly keys to the Mets' playoff aspirations. Here's how the Mets got two potential future aces to the Majors at the same time by keeping their individual electricity intact. 

 

Bobby Valentine, Benny Agbayani and a Mets friendship that keeps on rolling

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6593751/2025/09/04/mets-bobby-valentine-benny-agbayani/

When his family faced one of its most important decisions, Benny Agbayani knew exactly whom to call.

Bobby Valentine.

No, this wasn’t 1999 or 2009, when Valentine was Agbayani’s manager in Queens or in Japan. This was over the past 18 months, as Agbayani and his son, Bruin, debated the pros and cons of playing professional baseball.

“The first thing I did when I knew he was potentially going to be drafted was I called Bobby,” Agbayani said. “Bobby knows talent. I always trusted him.”

Agbayani and Valentine will be back together next on Sept. 13, when the Mets host an Alumni Classic Game ahead of their contest against the Texas Rangers. Agbayani and Valentine will represent the “Shea Stadium” squad that includes Mike Piazza, Edgardo Alfonzo, Al Leiter and Billy Wagner. They’ll play a “Citi Field” team with Johan Santana, Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and Curtis Granderson, among others.

CLICK ON THE LINK FOR THE REST OF THE STORY

Jim Bowden’s top 50 MLB prospects

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6587372/2025/09/03/top-mlb-prospects-rankings-griffin-wetherholt-mcgonigle/

35. Jett Williams, INF/OF, New York Mets (Triple A)

Age: 21

Bats: R Throws: R

Height: 5-7 Weight: 177

Scouting Grades: HIT: 55 PWR: 50 RUN: 60 ARM: 50 FLD: 50

Williams can play second base, shortstop and center field and his best role might be as a super utility player, similar to how the Dodgers have used Tommy Edman. Williams is an on-base machine who racks up stolen bases. He’s had to deal with several injuries over his career, with his right wrist being his biggest setback, but he’s stayed on the field consistently this season.

Baseball Hall of Famers Who Served During World War II

https://www.warhistoryonline.com/war-articles/hall-of-famers-wwii.html

Yogi Berra – US Navy

Most of the players on this list were already established in the big leagues before going off to war. Lawrence Peter “Yogi” Berra, however, served his country before he ever took on the majors. Following Pearl Harbor, the Missouri-born Berra signed up with the US Navy. He acted as a gunner’s mate on board the USS Bayfield (APA-33) during the Normandy landings, and was one of the many sailors and servicemen attacking German defenses on Omaha Beach.

He later confirmed he was also sent to Utah Beach.

In 1946, following his service, Berra became a New York Yankee. During his career, he won three MVP Awards and 10 World Series Championships as a player. His quirky and charming personality also made him one of the more memorable characters in baseball history.

Daniel Wexler                @WexlerRules

Baseball America ranks SS Elian Pena....#25 best prospect in the DSL (the only Met to crack the top 35). Wow. "Overall, Peña projects as an ok prospect, but one without a plus tool he can ride to the big leagues."

        Ernest Dove           @ernestdove

I don't have much to say about the apparent Baseball America DSL prospect rankings having Elian Peña near bottom of their top 35.

Rankings ain’t easy. Go look at their old rankings of Mclean, Tong & Sproat.

Tong wasn't even ranked coming into 2025 until couple months ago by them.

        Mets Prospect Group         @bkfan09

Hey for all the Mets fans who just started following DSL Prospects 3 months ago, Elian Pena has been a Mets prospect since he was 12-13 yrs old ,  Stearns was not with the Mets when Pena was “signed”.

        MACK – national writers like to get more clicks by writing something stupid (believe me, I am used to this when it comes to ESPN ranking Clemson football over the years). This kid started, like, o-for-a-month and went on to become one of the leading home run hitters in the league. That’s not having a “big league tool”. Who wrote this? Stupid guy.