Tom Brennan - MY METS PROSPECTS: #23 PJ CONLON

Tom Brennan - MY METS PROSPECTS: #23 PJ CONLON

PJ Conlon, I believe, had the lowest ERA in all of minor league baseball in 2016, going 12-2, 1.65 in A ball.  

Not a fireballer, could the lefty continue utter domination against AA competition in 2017?  

No.

The Belfast-born laddie still had a pretty fine season, going 8-9, 3.28 with a 1.24 WHIP in 136 IP.  One warning sign, looking forward, was a spike in homers allowed, to 14.  

I could have ranked him lower, but why did I slot him at #23?  Because late in the season, he was moved to the pen: in 7.1 IP there, he allowed no earned runs and fanned 8.  He also allowed just 10 earned runs in July, August and September in 47 IP, showing that he could rebound from a period of adversity in June where his ERA was 5.52.

And nicely, in the playoffs, he threw 1 scoreless inning while managing to hit 2 Trenton hitters with pitches - and Yank farmhands deserve a little rough treatment now and then, wouldn't you agree, lads and lassies?

I think that a future career as a major league LOOGY is certainly viable and likely for the soon-to-turn 24 Conlon, who is 20-12, 2.35 in 295 career innings.  After all, after 2018, Jerry Blevins will get much more expensive, as things stand now.  

Let's see how PJ can weather his likely promotion to Vegas Hell in 2018 before we get TOO excited, though - fellow lefty Al Baldonado  was great in AA in relief in 2017, but found the Vegas Hell fires to be mighty hot after an early season promotion there.   And Dave Roseboom, another lefty who dominated in relief in AA, got torched in Vegas in 2017, although it is hard to know how much foot issues leading to season-ending surgery relatively early in 2017 had a hand in his struggles.

Vegas truly separates the men from the boys.  PJ may need the Luck o' the Irish to enjoy a nice Irish Spring in Queens with the Mets down the road a wee bit.