16
2009
Sizing Up the Mets Minor League Prospects
An article by Former Writers
Last week, there was a great article on Project Prospect, about the Mets minor league system. Ryan Fay had a Q & A with Toby Hyde, of the Mets Minor League Blog. I’m going to relate the highlights of this article and add in some statistics and comments. The article is a great read.
Kirk Nieuwenhuis – CF – age 22 – “fairly high on Kirk”. Good defender in CF with improving bat and power. Hit 16 HR at single A. Called up to AA at end of year. Combined BA of .282 and OBP of .364. Will start 2010 at AA Binghamton.
Brad Holt – RHP – age 23 – “Transition to AA ball did not go well’. His stock has fallen. His K/9 dropped from 11 at St. Lucie to 7 at B-Mets. Velocity was off from ’08. This year – 3.12 ERA at St. Lucie. 6.21 ERA at B-Mets.
Jefry Marte – 3B – age 18 – Mets are still high on him despite disappointing season at Savannah. Hit .233 and made 49 errors at 3B. Only 18, so will probably repeat low A ball in 2010.
Ruben Tejada – SS/2B – age 19 – Played full year at B-Mets at only 19 years old. “Looks like a big leaguer”. After hitting only .229 with OBP of .293 in 2008 at St. Lucie, Tejada had a breakout season at Binghamton with a BA of .289 and OBP of .351. Had his best month in August. Good defense. As he gets stronger, power may come. Should start 2010 at Buffalo.
Josh Thole – C – age 23 - “with enough playing time, Thole will be a Rookie of the Year candidate in 2010″. Big question is his defense. Threw out 2 of 6 base stealers in MLB but allowed 3 passed balls in only 17 games. Was also among the leaders in passed balls in minors this season. He can hit, but not for power. BA .328, OBP .395, 29 doubles, 2 triples, 1 HR.
Jenrry Mejia – RHP – age 20 – Could have a relief role at major league level in 2010. Was great at A ball – 1.97 ERA but at AA – 4.47 ERA. This fall, AFL, is key to see if he can continue to develop at a rapid pace.
Ike Davis – 1B – age 22 – In 2009, ‘Davis was everything a first round draft pick should be”. Succeeded at high A and AA this season. Combined number: BA .298, OBP .381, OPS .906, 20 HR and 71 RBI. But struck out over 25% of at bats at AA. Strong defensively at 1B.
Reese Havens – 2B/SS – age 23 – Often injured in his 2 years of pro ball. Has power – 19 doubles and 14 HR in 360 at bats at St. Lucie. Should play AA in 2010 and that will tell a lot.
Jeurys Familia – RHP – age 20- Throws in the low to mid 90′s and has a good curve ball. In Savannah, he threw a full year of 134 IP, was 10-6, 2.69 ERA, 109 Ks, and a WHIP of 1.2. Should play at St. Lucie in 2010.
Stephen Matz was the Mets first pick in the draft this year. 6’3″ – 185 lb LHP who throws about 90, graduated from Ward Melville H.S.on Long Island.
About the Author: Former Writers
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nationals | 26 | 18 | .591 | - |
| Braves | 26 | 20 | .565 | 1.0 |
| Mets | 24 | 21 | .533 | 2.5 |
| Marlins | 24 | 21 | .533 | 2.5 |
| Phillies | 23 | 23 | .500 | 4.0 |
Last updated: 05/25/2012
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where is Flores???
Sorry – I forgot Flores. Hyde doesn’t say much on him, although he thinks he could be in the Mets top 5 prospects.
Flores, in a full season at low A Savannah, hit .264, with an OBP of .305. Slugging was only .332 and OPS was only .637. Only 25 of his 129 hits were extra base hits.
The biggest thing that Flores has going for him is that he’s only 18 years old. Hopefully, he will really improve in ’10. Question – Will he repeat Savannah this year? or will he start in St. Lucie? I hope Savannah, and after some success will be promoted.
The assessment of Mejia seems to be too far advanced. Send him to the majors in 2010 and look for failure more likely than not. He needs more time in the minors and forget about him on the Mets next season.
I think Toby Hyde was too optiimistic on Mejia. He did throw as high as 98 mph in his AFL game the other day. If he had had a great game, we probably would have agreed with Hyde. Hopefully, Mejia can succeed in AFL and really develop in 2010.
Thanks for the reply. Hopefully he stays on track and continues to develop at an appropriate level.
Anyone still think they get a rating of 16,17,or 18? My guess is low 20′s. With the exception of Davis and maybe the perennial #1 FMart there is no help for the next two years. Neise? He’s injured already and figures at best to be a #4 or 5 starter (nothing wrong with that we need a #4 or 5 starter).
We need a few guys to have breakout seasons next year. Like Flores, Mejia, Holt. Maybe another big season by Tejada too.
We do have some decent pitching down at low A too with Robert Carson and Kyle Allen.
But you’re right, not too strong at AA and AAA. If Davis, Thole, and Niese shine in ’10, I think we’ll all be happy.
I like following Havens as well, because he seems to have some power and it would be great to have him develop into the successor to Castillo over the next couple years.
dont forget about Famalia. he’ll be in the FSL or Binghamton next year.
It could be Havens, but also Tejada. Havens has more power.
Maybe one of them can do it.
Let’s hope both of them can do it, because we just don’t know the outcome with Reyes. We may very well need the 2 of them.
I don’t see Thole as a rookie of the year candidate. I dont even see him on the team in 2010. If he is, then we are in big trouble.
Thole being a rookie of the year candidate was a bit of an overstatement by Toby Hyde. He can hit, although not for power. Most of what I’ve read doubts whether he is ready defensively to be an every day MLB caliber catcher.
I have seem Mejia on TV when he pitched for the Cyclones. He has tremendous stuff. Havens does not seem to be able to stay on the field, like F-Mart. Holt might have just suffered from the extra innings in his first year. Who knows? One thing I do know, they are not getting coached like guys in other baseball organizations are. Just watching our team this year convinces me of that.
I agree with you about the apparent coaching deficiencies in the Mets organization. When these young players come up, they look green and unaware of basics.
Ladies and Gentlemen…introducing LeMoyne College Graduate…
ERIC BEAULAC – Stats Below
http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=P&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=542919
Beaulac, a 22 year-old Jesuit College grad – played for the LeMoyne Dolphins, the same winning program that produced Cincinnati Reds perfect game standout and World Series MVP Tom Browning and talented Astros starter Jim DeShaies, who joined Mike Scott and Nolan Ryan to form one of the most formidable rotations in the 1980′s.
Beaulac is 6’5″ 190 lb. of raw power, posting 133 K’s in 116 innings for Savannah Sand Gnats. He will likely start next year at Port St. Lucie and work his way to Binghamton during mid-season. Binghamton is just a short trot south of Syracuse, home of his beloved Dolphins.
So, when ERIC BEAULAC appears out of nowhere next year, you can say you saw it here first, courtesy of the 2-Cat.
I think that with Mets adding Backman, Teufel and other ’86 alumni to minor league staff that the coaching and attention to detail might improve; can’t be any worse than last year. I am really looking for Davis to be a mid summer or Sept call up next year after AAA seasoning and becoming 1st baseman for Mets in 2011, hoping Mets only get a one year rental at position or Murph until Ike is ready.