With all of the hoopla about Carson Benge possibly winning the starting right field job in 2026 it got me to thinking a bit about other position players the Mets have had in the past ten years who were given some opportunity to show what they could do. For the most part it is a rather unspectacular list.
2016
Opening Day saw two rookie infielders on the Mets roster, neither of whom made much of an impact during their big league careers. Prospect Gavin Cecchini and utility man Matt Reynolds were both on that roster but neither in a starting role for the club. Also premiering that year was recently traded outfielder Brandon Nimmo.
2017
As the calendar turned to 2017 there were a number of rookies getting opportunities including backup catcher Tomas Nido, infielder Phillip Evans, top prospect Amed Rosario, first baseman Dom Smith and outfielder Travis Taijeron.
2018
Making his debut this year was infielder Luis Guillorme who never amounted to much at the plate. Recently traded hot hitting Jeff McNeil also made his debut that year. Midway through the year outfield prospect Kevin Kaczmarski also made his major league debut.
2019
2020
The sole rookie offensive player to appear on the roster was 21 year old infielder Andres Gimenez who then GM Brodie Van Wagenen felt was going to be something special. He is still in the major leagues and had consecutive seasons with the Indians hitting 17 and 15 HRs including an All Star appearance but overall his glove and legs play better than does his bat.
2021
Quite a few offensive rookies made appearances for the club this year including Travis Blankenhorn, Jake Hager, Johneshwy Fargas and Khalil Lee. None of them obviously did much with the parent club nor elsewhere in baseball during their careers.
2022
Three current Mets made their debuts during the 2022 season. Infielders Brett Baty and Mark Vientos were rookies as was young catcher Francisco Alvarez. Of these three it would seem Baty and Alvarez still have viable roles with the club with Vientos on the bubble.
2023
The sole rookie offensive player to debut in 2023 was infielder Ronny Mauricio coming off some solid numbers in the minors. Unfortunately his role as a shortstop was blocked by All Star Francisco Lindor and he couldn’t really push anyone off of 2nd or 3rd base to get himself more playing time.
2024
Recently departed infielder/outfielder Luisangel Acuna was the sole offensive rookie to see time for the big club during this solid Mets season. He was not slated to be a starter until some injuries and slumps forced Carlos Mendoza’s hand.
2025
The only rookie to play for the Mets as a hitter in 2025 was longtime minor league catcher Hayden Senger who helped Luis Torrens as his backup while Francisco Alvarez started the season on the IL.
5 comments:
Sadly, our prospect hitters got shut out 2-0 in last nights Prospect Breakout hitting fizzle. Thankfully, Benge was not there. He will be in Queens, if Stearns is smart.
Mets drafted a power bat in Pete Alonso in 2016. Boy, did that pay off.
Little nugget that I heard at the beginning of the prospects game last night, most of which I didn’t get to watch. Eli Serrano apparently had three home runs in minor league camp this spring, and added some muscle. So maybe he’ll have a good year.
Mack's Mets had some great rookies in 2025 too, led by Steve Sica, Angry Mike, and Rob Holland
Let's Go Mack's
Great memories - some of those names are still performing well, though for other teams. Hope Benge makes the starting lineup and stays there.
They ought to come up with new stat, PBR.Prospects Below Replacement. Some teams rely on prospects because they can’t afford free agents. If the Mets relied only on prospect development over the past ten years, they’d be in a heap of doo doo right now.
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