Tom Brennan: Yan Makes Leap; TWO Rosses; Metoyer; 40-12; And How Did They Win?

“Jumping Jefry, Batman!”

Jefry Yan just turned 30, and made the seemingly impossible leap to the big leagues when the Mets dealt away the better half of their bullpen in the late July timeframe.

For Yan? A long, strange baseball trip. Then…Quite a sudden jump.

He started out his pro career in 2014. Two years before Pete Alonso turned pro, for a time reference.

He got rocked in the DSL in 2014 at age 17, then threw much better in 2015 in the DSL…4-2, 1.56 in 34 innings...and naturally, dropped out of baseball, not returning for 6 years.

He had a 2.61 ERA in his wild but successful return in 2021 in A and AA.

Then, continuing the “oddly” career stuff, he oddly threw 57 minor league innings in each of the 2022 and 2023 seasons, had the same 4.89 ERA, and allowed the same number of unearned runs both years. 

Notably, though, he fanned 190 batters spanning the 114 innings in those two bookend seasons.

Over the next two years, he pitched in Dominican Winter ball, and in Japan, too, and even snuck in some AAA PCL in 2025 for the Rockies, putting up a stinky 7.28 ERA in those 27 AAA minor league relief outings.

Then, after his unconventional, and always wild, TWELVE YEAR, 2014-25 stretch of pitching and non-pitching, the Mets decided to give him a try in 2026, to see if that very live lefty arm could be tamed and harnessed. 

And that did happen, to a reasonable degree, pitching to a 3.24 ERA in AA and AAA, the higher quality portion of his pitching being in AAA, with an amazing 77 Ks, but also 28 walks, in just 42 innings in the minors this year.

His leaping exuberance on the mound began to catch everyone’s attention.

We live in social media times.

Then, the Mets’ pitching fire sale in late July occurred, which included the departure of quality lefty relievers Minter and Raley. 

The golden opportunity then arose for two lefties - Yan and Lavender - to join the Mets. 

Lavender is a worthy story in and of itself, but that is for another day.

I watched some of Yan’s strong two inning outing the other night gains lethal Milwaukee. 

He actually reminded me a bit of…RANDY MYERS, who had a hi-velocity left arm, fanned a lot of guys, and walked a bunch, too. 

Yan’s first 9 Mets pro innings were solid, with a 3.00 ERA. It will be interesting to see if the Mets can calm him down and get him to focus on throwing more strikes.

If he can, a long MLB relief career could lie ahead. Think Huascar Brazoban.

One big thing to help focus Yan’s attention right now is, after making little $ in pro ball, he is now pulling in nearly $5,000 every game that goes by.  That net worth sure starts to add up quick. “Once you have found THAT, never let it go.”

Hopfully, Jefry Yan will give us many “Enchanted Evenings” when he pitches for the Mets.

How? The 6’3” 185 athletic, youthfully exuberant southpaw needs to…

Throw strikes. And keep on leaping. 

He is theatrically a Savannah Banana…but with a 100+ MPH FB. 

What’s not to like?

P.S. He mentioned his favorite movie is “21 Jump Street”. 

METOYER DRAWS CLOSER

Another guy on a long journey, Brian Metoyer, drafted in the 40th round in 2018, draws closer to age 30.

November this year, his clock turns 30.

Amazingly, he is still pursuing his MLB dream.

He seemingly is drawing close to the majors, after his often-sputtering and injured minor league journey.

He is 5-2, 3.88 this year in 43 relief outings, with 76 Ks in 49 innings.

His ERA is that high due to 5 shaky outings out of 43.

He apparently is very tough to square up, allowing just 56 hits in 91 innings over the past two seasons. And just 105 in 175 pro innings.

Amazingly, over those 91 innings in 2025 and 2026, he has allowed 1 HR.

Since his promotion to AAA? 

3-1, 1.86, with a sizzling 18 Ks in 9.2 IP. DAD GUM!

He is clearly VERYCLOSE to achieving his long odds MLB dream.

Good for him. I surely hope he makes it like y/o Huascar Brazoban did.

Assuming he is still in the Mets organization next year, his odds are very strong that he will cross the MLB threshold in 2027.

A TALE OF TWO ROSSES

What do Dylan Ross and Shawn Ross have in common?  

First of all: Flaws.  Like regrets, they’ve had a few.

Besides that:

Both were playing in the Mets system in Syracuse in late August.

And both have power games.

Dylan is a high velo power arm, when healthy, and he is often erratic.

Shawn is HR blasting catcher who strikes out at an amazing rate. 

C Shawn seems to be the more flawed of the two. Perhaps fatally flawed.

Dylan the flamethrower has been written a lot about in Mack’s Mets. 

Whether he is a September call up remains to be seen. I say READY.

Shawn Ross meanwhile has hit  53 HRs in 884 minor league at bats.  Wow.

But he has fanned a crazy 412 times in 1,067 minors plate appearances. 

And he has fanned 192 times in the minors in 476 PAs (40.3%) in the minors in 2025-26. Future MLB life does NOT begin at 40%.

His major league career with Pittsburgh was very brief but fit his profile. 

Up 5 times, fanned twice, hit a HR. 

The HR traveled 438 feet, in his first of two MLB games.

He throws out base runners well. He has clear plus power.  But, flaws? 

He needs to cut the Ks. Drastically. Usually a lot easier said than done.

GUYS WHO CAN RAKE NEED BUCKETS AND WHEEL BARROWS FOR THEIR CASH

 

I LOVE 40-12 WHEN IT COMES TO BASEBALL GAMES WITH SCORING DELUGES

The Mets’ 4 minor league teams each won, by a combined score of 40-12.

Who hit? Everybody, which makes this particular writer very happy.

BUT…let me not just leave it at “everybody”. Let’s name names.

 I will note a few specifically:

Slamming’ Sammy Stafura had his first 2 Brooklyn HRs since his trade.

 - Both, naturally, came on the road.

And the “Vabulous” V Boys - Voit and Vargas - got on base 9 times. 

 - Voit has a .500 OBP in 22 AA games (“he’s ready”). 

Vargas .333 in August.

Parada had 2 more hits, and had a “Ted Williams” .411/.443/.679 in August.

J Ro, a/k/a Jefferson “Aaron” Rojas, had 3 hits, including yet another HR.

 - 7 HRs, 25 RBIs in 23 August games since his trade. Exuding greatness.

Formerly comatose Binghamton’s offense hit .288/.367/.494 in August, with 45 HRs and 7.2 runs per game. How? Removed several non-hitters and replaced them with robot hitting machines.

Aiden Robbins (.288) had 2 hits and 4 RBIs (16) for Lucie, adding to his so far quite successful post-draft pro debut.

Oh, and six Syracuse pitchers joined in throwing a no hitter.

A day after a Tong near-no hitter.

But…OTOH…St Lucie pitchers surrendered 7 ugly runs per game in August.

And…importantly…

The NY Mets were one loss closer to staying in the all important bottom 6 drafter team cluster.

It Was A Sweet Sunday.  

May September in the minors be a hitting repeat of thunderous August.

METS TRIED SO VERY HARD TO LOSE

But Robert Stock won his first MLB game since…2019? 

Against a division leader, Tampa, fiercely fighting to fend off the Yanks?

In Tampa.

Not just Stock, but a line up without Soto and with AAA Pache, Morel, Duarte, Lavender, Dedniel, and Devenski playing?  And Lindor hitless? Vientos first game back.

And the Mets nonetheless won?  

YA CAN’T LOSE THEM ALL.

Somewhere, the 2027 Draft Positioning Chart shuddered.

Steve Sica - Three Met Prospects I'd like to see in the AFL

It's officially September, which means Fall is right around the corner, and with it, the Arizona Fall League. The team affiliates have already been announced, with the Met prospect assigned to the Surprise Saguaros. They'll be joined by prospects from the Royals, Guardians, Rangers, and NL rival Phillies.

The Fall League is a mix of rising stars who are on the doorstep of an MLB debut, and prospects who might've spent the better part of the summer on the IL, looking to get in some reps before the long offseason begins. The Mets will likely send their usual 7-8 prospects, with those details coming later this month. In the meantime, here are three names I'd like to see next month in the desert.

INF Boston Baro:

Seems to be a textbook case for the player who spent most of the MiLB season on the IL and needs reps this fall in Arizona. Baro was once a top Met prospect before injuries derailed his progress this season. He's appeared in just seven games this season and has fallen off the top-30 Mets prospect list after a flurry of deadline moves for the Mets.

Baro, an 8th-round pick in 2023, turned 22 just over a week ago. He's still young with a lot of potential left. In 2025, with High-A Brooklyn, he stole 28 bases while only being caught twice. His .220 average and .602 OPS were concerning, but at 20-years-old for most of that season, he was playing up to his competition. 

The AFL could be just the boost Baro needs. In a typically friendly hitters environment, with the cooler October desert air, Baro could use this Fall as a springboard to a successful 2027 season.

RHP Garrett Stratton:

A steal of a draft for the Mets last year in the 20th round. He's arguably been their most effective reliever in 2026. In 27 innings with Double-A Binghamton, Stratton has filled in as closer and pitched to the tune of a 1.63 ERA with 36 strikeouts and just two walks allowed.

The numbers he's put up this season would qualify him to go in the first ten rounds, not in the second-to-last round. 

The Mets have had a history of sending some of their top relievers to the AFL during the Cohen era, and seeing Stratton go up against the best of MiLB hitters would be a treat and perhaps expedite his journey to Queens, maybe as early as 2027.

1B Billy Amick:

With his raw power, Amick might hit balls straight to the Grand Canyon while playing the the Phoenix suburbs during the AFL. Amick came to the Mets in a mid-season trade and has hit over 30 home runs this season, while being promoted to Triple-A Syracuse in the process.

Personally, I don't think Amick quite fits the bill for an AFL selection, but if the Mets decide to send him to the desert, I think we'll see his power numbers absolutely take off in the dry desert air of October.

 

The Cautious Optimist -- Death and Grieving: The Arc of the Mets Season

 

As the calendar turns to September, the end of the season is in sight.  This has not been a season to remember. I worry that it will be hard to forget.  

We may not have realized it at the time -- I know I didn't -- but the Mets fate was determined long before summer officially arrived.  Strangely, I found myself engaged far into the season without ever once being optimistic about the team's chances of making the playoffs.  Worse, I remained engaged even though the brand of baseball they played during what remained of the Mendoza era ranged between uninspired and downright dreadful. They were literally unwatchable, but like many others, I couldn't turn away.

I certainly found reasons to stay glued to the game on radio and television, daytime and night, weekdays and weekends.  Some reasons were sound; others fugazy at best. 

Among the handful of legitimate reasons were provided by the Crazy brothers: Benge and Ewing. They shared a youthful exuberance and seemed to genuinely enjoy playing the game, and they played hard and fearlessly.

Benge especially displayed a quiet confidence and maturity beyond his years. His running mate, Ewing, barely 21 years old, looks as if he should be carded even attending a Pony League game -- if beer is being served.  He's hit the rookie wall leaving the heavy lifting to Benge who has handled it quite well. 

But the sight of Ewing patrolling Center Field and a good fifty yards more in either direction made for must watch TV.

Like rookies, fans are subject to hitting the wall as well.  I've hit mine. It's as if it has finally dawned on me that as the temperature drops and September turns to October, the Mets will once again have dispersed across the country and the lights shut off at Citi Field until next Spring.  

I am experiencing that fact as harsh, though it was a pre-ordained outcome months ago. I knew it then as much as I know it now.  The difference is that I feel it now and I didn't then.

I am sure many of you know what it feels like when a loved one passes away.  The pain is immediate, but the grieving is often delayed.  Relatives and friends comfort you and are around for the first 30 days or so and you don't experience the loneliness or emptiness that you know you eventually will have to live with.   You carry on until one day you don't.  And you don't because you can't.  

That is the day that you can begin to grieve the loss. 

I am not an idiot.  I am not comparing losing a loved one with the Mets losing their pulse months ago.  The patient was sick before the season started.  Emergency surgery after the 12 game losing streak was called for but not provided.  In retrospect, we know now it would have only delayed the inevitable, but only briefly, and not meaningfully.

All of us knew the Mets were dead this year before Memorial day. Not just in retrospect.  We knew then and many of us said as much.  Even so, we didn't acknowledge the death, even as the team played more deadball than baseball. We acknowledged everything but the death itself. 

Certainly I did. I was into the Mets and vocal in my feelings right through the trade deadline and beyond.  Indeed, the response of the minor league affiliates to the new players who had joined as well as the vibe that seemed to emanate from the major league squad  was not just refreshing, and invigorating; it was contagious and life affirming.

I was as guilty as the next, maybe more so, of seeing signs of life in little things and bigger things, not because they could convince me that the Mets were actually still alive and worth the time I was devoting to them: instead because responding to events and interpreting them as signs of life was a way of putting off grieving the loss of the season.  I wasn't ready.

And then the calendar turned to September, and I find myself depressed, discouraged and worried about the future.  Not mine, but the Mets, and thus mine -- at least to some extent.   I am sure I will watch the Jets on Sundays and attend the Nets games from time to time.  But I don't associate this time of the year with much else beyond the Mets, golf and, as always, my family and friends.   

The patient was sick from the start, the death inevitable, but the grieving has only just begun.

I am not sure I am ready yet to make myself vulnerable to imagining next year. Right now I am feeling, probably for the first time, what the loss of this season has meant.  More now, I am sure, as I get older, which, I agree, is far better than the alternative, and the inevitability of an ending replacing strategizing about the end game is all too real.  

But I haven't felt this way in other years; and there have been plenty of years when the Mets were dead by Independence Day, when high hopes were dashed as early as Memorial Day.  But I didn't experience those lost seasons as something to grieve.

Was there something different about this year that made the loss worse, more unbearable?

On reflection I think so.

From the start the team didn't feel right or intentional.  They weren't misfits, like the 62 Mets were (God bless them) but the pieces didn't fit.  By saying they seemed unintentional I mean to call attention to the fact that the pieces weren't put together to fit with one another.  The idea was not that there was a place that each player would fit like a glove; rather, it was that a number of players would be forced to fit to roles they were unaccustomed to. 

Maybe the absence of fit -- of players to roles set aside for them, and of. fit or lack of it among the players themselves -- helps to explain why the team never felt present to me or rooted. They looked uncomfortable as a team and played that way.  For most of the season, they were identifiable as players on the same team largely because they wore the same uniforms. 

They never energized the ball park or the fan base.  

They were dead on arrival.  At times it felt that they were put together to fail or at least that the person who put them together had no idea what putting together a team calls for. 

A team is an organic entity that plays together, each person being committed not just to doing the tasks assigned to him but committed as well to helping others succeed at theirs.  Teams find ways to work together to reach goals they share.  

This is my way of understanding the criticism that so many Mets fans have had of David Stearns: his commitment to analytics left him unable to appreciate the decidedly human interactions and attributes that are necessary to create a team.

And this year provided reason to think that their criticisms are not without merit. It's not about what analytics can't do.  The criticism is rightly aimed at what humans do, what organization leaders must do, and what he failed to do.

The Mets were never designed this year to be a Team.  The results, and even more so, the style of play -- certainly until Andy Green took over -- was proof of exactly that. 

In a way what makes this year different was that the Mets didn't so much fail as a Team as it was a case of their failing to be a Team.

So, Yes this year was special.  And not in a good way.