The New York Mets achieved their goal at the trade deadline by trading away established, higher paid veterans for controllable minor league talent. You can assess the value of the trades in many ways, and I am sure it will be debated for the rest of the season.
Regardless of how everyone feels about the trades, they are done. The Mets have brought in a substantial haul of young talent that has now been distributed throughout their development system to grow and be evaluated.
The Binghamton Rumble Ponies, AA affiliate of the New York Mets, has gained a large share of that new talent on its roster. Those newcomers include:
- Jefferson Rojas, the new #1 prospect in the Mets' system. Rojas is an infielder who was acquired in the Cubs trade for Clay Holmes and Tyrone Taylor.
- Emilien Pitre, an infielder from the Rays organization that was part of the Peralta trade. Pitre is the #17 prospect in the new rankings.
- Gary Gill Hill, a pitcher who was also acquired in the Peralta trade. Hill is now the #19 prospect.
- Gabe Davis, a pitcher who was acquired from the White Sox in the Brazoban deal. Davis is now ranked #20.
- Billy Amick, an infielder acquired from the Twins in the AJ Minter deal. Amick is not rated in the top 30 prospects but comes to the team on a power surge with 23 home runs in 86 games with AA Wichita.
- Jacob Reimer, the #5 prospect who has just returned from the IL.
- Mitch Voit, the #6 prospect who was named Eastern League Player of the Week last week after his scalding hot AA debut.
- Chris Suero, the multi-talented many position player ranked #16
I visited the stadium yesterday to see what this team looks like. Here are my initial observations:
First of all, the team is heating up just as all the new prospects arrive. They had struggled through the first half and into the second, but are now playing good ball on a three game winning streak including 6 of their last 10.
RJ Gordon started the game tonight and appears to have figured something out. He threw 6 innings of three-hit ball tonight, giving up one earned run and striking out ten. In his last three outings, he has given up only 5 ER in 18 innings. Gordon had a nice mix that kept hitters off-balance for a majority of the game.
Chris Suero proved to be one of the most versatile baseball players I have ever seen in professional baseball. He has played several positions this season, but I must admit that I have never seen a catcher play center field. He started there tonight and ran some balls down in the gaps to prove that this was not just a stunt. The man can play wherever you put him. He has to get his bat going again - has been in quite a slump recently and went 0-4 tonight. I would love to see his power return.
John Bay is a name that few have heard of in this game of prospects, but I was very impressed with the way he tracked balls and effortlessly glided around left field. He covered a lot of ground out there just like his predecessors in Binghamton last year - Benge, Ewing, and Morabito. Bay is hitting .290 in 31 at-bats so far and added another hit tonight.
Carlos Guzman came in for an inning of relief. He was mixing 94mph fastballs with 81mph changeups and a curveball that had a huge 12-6 break. Not much contact made - two strikeouts and a lazy fly ball.
Emilien Petre looked smooth at second base and at the plate. He stroked an opposite field hit in the left-center gap that looked like AJ Ewing swinging the bat. Of all the new guys I saw tonight, he looked the best.
Billy Amick looks like he needs some work. His big, weight-on-the-back-foot swing may lift some balls, but he does not appear to have the bat-to-ball skills to pull it off. His college stats would indicate that he is a better hitter, so he needs to get back to basics. No need to chase Clifford's big red K record.
That's a wrap on last night's observations. Stay tuned for more from the Ponies - this is going to be the team to watch in the Mets minor league system for the next couple of months.
Paul, thank you for taking time to chronicle your night at the ballpark. It was enjoyable to live it through your eyes. Some questions:
ReplyDeleteWhat was your impression of Rojas at the plate as I understand he DH’d?
I have read that Suero has less than good catching grades and it’s the arm that people love. Like many other athletic catchers that have come before him, switching positions wouldn’t be a bad thing and building a utility player that can truly play everywhere would have value. Offensively, did he look like he had a clue or did he look overmatched in AA?
How did Amick look defensively? Is he a bat only player?
Rojas at the plate had a terrible brain fart. With two outs and a man on third, he hit a four-bouncer down the third base line that would have scored a run ... if he ran. He did not and was thrown out by 11 steps. Next time up he hit into a double play but hustled to first to try to beat the throw. So I wouldn't accuse him of not trying - just not instinctively getting out of the box hard any time it is close.
DeleteSuero is in a slump - that's all. He has shown the ability to hit and hit with power at this level before, including in clutch situations.
Amick fielded the position very capably. I have not given up on him - it just looked like he fell in love with his recent power surge and was trying to impress the home crowd.
The Mets Top 30 on their site will be updated shortly. Pitre is a fine hitter and jumped to 13.
ReplyDeleteMuch focus needs to shift to the newly imported hitters.
Nice wrap, Paul
ReplyDeleteI'm curious where the baseball gods rank the Mets chain now
ReplyDeleteOne curious thing I did not mention - the Rumble Ponies roster only has three outfielders listed. (Suero is listed as a catcher). I am sure there will be some movement once things settle down.
ReplyDelete