Please find the
“Flushing 14”.
These are the prospects
that need to step up beginning this April and return the Mets to a playoff team
by 2014. All are paid the minimal and come out of the system.
The team can survive if
they all fair, but, if 80% live up to their projections, the Mets will enter
the 2014 season with a playoff contender in the $45-50mil payroll range.
We will update this
post weekly throughout the season.
Week
ending 2-5-12:
SP Matt Harvey – Harvey
was interviewed by MLB.com and he says he is 100% ready to return to AA-ball
this spring. The video can be found on Mack’s Mets.
SP Zack Wheeler – The Binghamton Examner wrote on 1-31-12 that Wheeler is expected to itch the April 5th opener vs. Akron. He talked to Milb.com about his secondary pitches:
I'd never been able to throw a curve ball or
anything really. I threw a pretty good one in high school, scouts said, but
once you get up to where I am now people will be hitting it. My fastball is my
best pitch and it's up in the air after that. I throw the curve ball at certain
times and I throw the slider at certain times. They're both pretty good now. I can use my
curve for strike three or I could use it to set a guy up early in the count and
then come back with a harder slider or a fastball. I hope to be able to use it
a bunch of different ways. That's what I'm trying to figure out right around
now so that I can be prepared later on.
SP
Jeurys Familia – Baseball America has reported that
Familia’s short stint during the end of winter ball was a full success. It was
only five inning over five games, but they were great ones J
SP Jenrry Mejia – Right now, Mejia is on schedule to return to active duty in late June. Retro from Hardball Times:
6/24/09 - I will admit it, I missed the boat
on Mejia. Earlier this year I glanced at his High-A numbers, which were
impressive on the surface but not all that spectacular peripherally, and then
moved on to the next player that caught my eye. But, at the age of 19 I should
have at least added him to the bubble. I didn't even consciously realize that
he was promoted to Double-A Binghamton until a few starts in. That's when my
eyes were opened. Right on cue, kindly Hardball Times reader Suchit Patel
emailed me no more than an hour later looking for my thoughts on Mejia. Dear
Suchit, go get Jenrry Mejia. I will admit another thing, I haven't even seen
him pitch yet, but I'm hoping to catch his next start. I am being aggressive
with this ranking, as I've essentially moved him ahead of Fernando Martinez as
the team's No. 1 prospect, but the numbers and the age don't lie. He's riding
on a lot of hype, and I usually don't just blindly buy into hype, but this time
I will take the plunge
RP
Josh Edgin – Josh
told MMO earlier this week:
My goals for next season are to pitch to the
best of my ability. I know what I have in me, and I expect that out of me every
pitch. The general approach will be to go after the hitters. If you try to
think or over-analyze, that is when you get hurt as a pitcher. It all starts
with strike one. I am excited to make the jump to AA (if all goes well) but I’m
not sure if I will have to do anything differently until I get there, whenever
that may be. I don’t want to get my hopes up about going up there. Just take it
one day at a time.
RP
Jack Leathersich – the word is that he will start in the
spring in order to build up some innings pitched a la what Ryan Fraser did last
season. The problem is where to pitch him since the system is so filled up with
a bunch of “C-B” rated pitching prospects.
RP
– Brant Rustich – Brant advised to me directly that his
first mini-camp well and he is very excited about the new feeling he has in his
pitching hand. He considers his progress ahead of schedule and says he is 100%
ready for spring training.
2B – Reese Havens – Reports are that he is 100% and ready to play.
SS Jordany Valdespin – there is chatter that "Spin" will compete during ST for the Queens second base job, but most of us believe that Daniel Murphy has won that role already. Jordy didn't fair that well aftr being promoted late in 2011 to AAA and he needs another season under his very talented belt.
3B
– Wilmer Flores – Flores made the conversion to 3B in
winter ball and is scheduled to play that position in Binghamton come April.
Wilmer told me on Saturday that he is 100% ready for the challenges of 2012.
C Juan Centeno – Centeno is the closest the Mets have to a real catching prospect. He should get the lion share of play time in Binghamton in 2012.
OF
Kirk Nieuwenhuis – The current plan for Kirk is to work his way back in May and play the 2012 season in Buffalo. His kind of injury demands to play everyday so sitting on a Flushing bench will do him, nor the team, any good.
OF
Matt den Dekker – Matt has a legitimate chance to open
2013 in the Mets centerfield. His self-proclaimed two goals in 2012 are to cut
down his strikeouts and increase his stolen bases.
1 comment:
First of all: I loved this
Second of all: The Mets will be super eager to have one of the top 3 SPs produce in ST. They NEED a positive story to latch onto for 2012... even if that story is in upstate NY.
Third: I could see Kirk sliding into CF in flushing if Torres struggles and he's been healthy for a month
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