Steve Sica- The Next Rising Met Prospect?

Photo Credit: Bella Dunning

2025 saw a surge in Met hitting prospects. Names like Carson Benge, Jacob Reimer and A.J Ewing all had monster years which not only accelerated their rankings on the top prospect list, but also their development as each of them were promoted, some even getting multiple promotions through the 2025 season.

As we've gone about a week and a half through the 2026 season. Carson Benge is with the Mets, Reimer and Ewing are with Double-A, with Reimer off to the slow start, but Ewing, picking up right where he left off in 2025, flirting with a .400 batting average. Which Met prospects this year will see a similar rise?

One of the names I'm keeping an eye on this year is the very much hyped, Elian Pena, who at 18-years-old has put up an OPS of .933 in his first eight games in Low-A. Not bad, considering he skipped over the FCL and came to St. Lucie straight from the Dominican Summer League. Mitch Voit, the Mets first round draft pick last year, is another player I'm excited to watch this summer. A nice blend of contact and speed, Voit is currently with High-A Brooklyn, after showing off his stuff last summer in Low-A St. Lucie.

One name that really stands out to me though, and someone who looks to be adjusting to perhaps the toughest MiLB level in Double-A is outfielder Eli Serrano III.

The Mets drafted Serrano, no relation to the 1989 movie Major League slugger, in the fourth round of the 2024 draft out of North Carolina State. His first professional season found him in Brooklyn for all of 2025. He didn't turn a lot of heads in that time, batting just .222 with an OPS of .690. Keep in mind, as a left hander, he's not the first player to struggle in Coney Island, with the wind coming off the ocean cutting potential home runs into routine fly balls. Serrano saw his power numbers plummet because of this. The potential though is still there, as Serrano came into 2026 ranked at the Mets number 13 prospect per MLB Pipeline.

The Mets had enough confidence in Serrano to give him a bump to start this year in Double-A. So far, he's proven them right. In his first seven games with Binghamton, he's batting .320, has an OPS of .979, he's reached base in every game he's played so far, and has two doubles and two triples, in 25 at-bats. 

The key attributes in Serrano's game are power and plate discipline. Standing at 6'5 he can grow into his frame to become an intimidating presence at the plate. He mashed 16 home runs during his two years with NC State. He also is excellent at making contact. Despite his struggles in 2025, he only struck out 77 times in 324 at-bats and would walk 50 times. He's still a youngster, turning 23 in May, and is projected to make the Major Leagues by next season.

Serrano is one of a few promising hitting prospects that are coming up the Met system. He's flown a bit under the radar, as Carson Benge has been the most hyped outfielder for the last couple years. But if the early successful results continue for Serrano, he's going to start to come up in more conversations about the Mets' future and I'd image he could rocket up to at least the top-ten Met prospect list by mid-season.