Which Of Our Top Pitching Prospects Are You Most Excited About?

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• FL Met Fan Rich January 6, 2012 at 8:20 am

  I have seen both Wheeler ans Harvey pitch in FL. I slightly like wheeler better.

  Good lefties are harder to come by!
  • Joe Diaz January 6, 2012 at 9:16 am

    Wheelers a righty.
  • Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 9:30 am

    On top of being the mets #1 prospect in just half of season the man is ambidextrus!!?? wheeler is really the man!
• Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 9:29 am

  Jeurys Familia and Matt Harvey……………. and also Corey Vaughn!!!!! and Gilber gomez.. i can go on and on!!!!!!
  • Des January 6, 2012 at 2:55 pm

    Alex68 — Cory Vaughn will be 23 in 2012 and needs more accomplishments before we can conclude he’s the real deal. As he’s gone up the minor league chain in 2010 and 2011 from Brooklyn to Savannah and then to St. Lucie, his productivity has declined. For example, his AVG went from .307, to .255. And his SLG went from .557 to .402. He’s also got to learn to run the bases better. In 2011, his CS numbers rose, so that he stole on just 55% of his attempts. Cory has a lot of power so he merits watching but he may or many not be a true blue chipper. Let’s hope but not bet the farm yet on this kid.
    • Des January 6, 2012 at 3:13 pm

      Gilbert Gomez is three years younger than Cory Vaughn and his numbers tell us he’s faster than Cory. He’ll hit for power in a couple of years as he adds muscle. But he’s still green and needs some more time. Which one or if both of these guys will make it is still like reading palms. Sometime in 2012, we’ll know a lot more.
• Donal January 6, 2012 at 9:36 am

  Part of the problem with Generation K was how they were handled. They were over hyped and Wilson was rushed. Pulsipher had health problems plus the anxiety and depression (not anyone’s fault, just a really good reason to build a deep system).

  Izzi spent 3 1/2 years in the minors and went on to have a pretty decent career.

  Should we be cautious? Hell, ya. Generation K should serve as a warning when dealing with prospects, especially pitchers.

  But, the past is not prologue. It’s not like these guys have Sports Illustrated covers, are being rushed through the system or are being crowned anything. If anything, the specter of Generation K is causing a lot of skepticism in the media.
  • Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 9:44 am

    Did you even know about generation K and how they were handled!?!?!? Why don’t you for once STHU and let the people who weren’t 6 years old comment about stuff!?!? they were all bust and got hurt, it happens in the major leagues as well as in the minors you know…
    • Donal January 6, 2012 at 10:10 am

      That is some good baseball talk there, alex. The conversation is so much better with your addition.
    • any January 6, 2012 at 1:59 pm

      Izzy was far from a bust. He just ended up having his career as a closer.
  • METS62FAN January 7, 2012 at 9:01 am

    DONAL, THERE IS A CONSISTANCY OF DISAPPOINTMENT, I BELIEVE THE AUTHOR BOILS DOWN TO IT’S SIMPLEAST CAUSE IN THIS STATEMENT…
    ” can’t wait to see what they do this year, but at this point I just can’t make up my mind who I am most excited about. Can you?”
    SIMPLY PUT, IT’S THAT CAN’T WAIT EMOTION THAT MUST BE STIFLED!

    THE VERY WORST THING WE CAN DO ESP NOW AS WE’RE DELIBERATELY BUI;LDING A 5th PLACE TEAM IS TO RUSH ANY OF OUR TOP PITCHING PROSPECTS 1 THROUGH 10 LET ALONE THESE TOP 3. BE IT GEN K, PELFREY, HEILMAN, MEJIA NIESE, GEE NONE RECEIVED THE MAXIMUM DEVELOPMENT ALLOCATION. FORCED LEARNING O.J.T. IS THE SINGLE WORST MISTAKE THIS OWNERSHIP HAS IMPATIENTLY COMMITTED AS THEY KEEP RUSHING THE BEST TO DISAPPOINTMENT.

    MY STRONGEST RECOLLECTION OF THIS TYPE OF INSANITY WAS THE NIESE DEBUT AS THEY CLOSED THEIR CUMUALTIVE EYES & SACRIFICED THIS “KID” TO DEBUT AGAINST THE SINGLE MOST DEVASTATING RHH LINEUP IN THE LEAGUE AT THAT TIME
    (MILWALKEE) BE IT INTERVIEWS WITH TERRIFIC, DOC, DARLING, OJEDA, THE MOST PROFOUND WEAPON A YOUNG, TALENTED PITCHER GOES TO THE MOUND WITH IS THEIR SELF-CONFIDENCE REPEATEDLY THE METS HAVE CHOSEMN TO PUT DESPERATION AHEAD OF DEVELOPMENT. THE LEAGUE’S BEST FRANCHISE, IMO @ PITCHING DEVELOPMENT, MiLB TO MLB CROSSOVER SUCCESSES IS THE ATLANTA BRAVES WHO NEVER DEBUT A ROOK STARTER IN A PRE-ORDAINED MOST LIKELY LOSING SITUATION. THE ANTITHESIS OF THE BRAVES HAS BEEN THE METS. IMO, WE’D BE IN MUCH BETTER POSITION IF NONE OF OUR TOP 5 PITCHING PROSPECTS ARE SEEN IN FLUSHING B4 2013. ENSURING TYHEM EACH AT LEAST 1 FULL SEASON OF AA,AAA!
• Joe D January 6, 2012 at 9:59 am

  I think our big three pitching prospects all have great upside, but the one who is more polished and has lived up to expectations thus far is Matt Harvey. He has done nothing to tarnish his shine from the day he was drafted and came from one of the best baseball colleges in the country.

  Wheeler has plenty of upside and MAYBE even a higher ceiling, but his stock has diminished due to bouts with wildness and inconsistency. It was not really hard to figure out why the Giants were okay with moving him for Beltran,.

  Familia is a wildcard. For every scout that sees him as a solid mid rotation starter, there’s another scout who says he has the offerings of a reliever/closer. 2012 will be a big test for him.
  • Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 10:05 am

    Same can be said about fulmer, i even though he was a reliever to tell you the truth, with that being said i still think the one who will take us to the promise land (after sandy leaves) will be familia… for some reason i don’t trust wheeler, and harvey will be our #2…
    • Kay January 6, 2012 at 12:08 pm

      Can you give me specifics why you don’t trust Wheeler?
    • Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 12:24 pm

      well, most kids when they’re “highly touted” they struggle.. not only pitching wise but to hold emotions and what not. he hasn’t shown anything imo to be deserving of being the mets #1 prospect, a single A stin with the mets is not enough evidence to be touted the best prospect, maybe i am biased for familia more than anything, he hasn’t dominate the way harvey and familia did before being promoted, he’s had flashes and a few good games here and there, but not domination the way those 2 did.. maybe i am wrong and all 3 turn out to be studs, but he’s seen as the savior for this franchise, we’ve seen how many of those have turned out…
      • Donal January 6, 2012 at 12:34 pm

        Who do you see using the word savior? At all?

        No one player is ever going to save a franchise. However, many knowledgeable people believe Wheeler to have a very good chance of being the best of a very good crop of pitchers.

        Your problems with Wheeler have nothing to do with baseball.
        • Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 1:54 pm

          Donal, Kay: is my fault for engaging in baseball talk with you two, i gave my honest response and that was it, but somehow you 2 twisted my words and picked whatever you thought it was best to make it seem as if i’m hating on the kid, by saying: “Your problems with Wheeler have nothing to do with baseball” demonstrate you want some sort of debate as to why i even have a problem with wheeler which i don’t, i am just stating past occurenses, but notice how i always use the word “wish i am wrong and all 3 turn out to be studs!!!”… but no.. you won’t mention that part..
          • Kay January 6, 2012 at 2:13 pm

            Clearly you didn’t even read my response because I twisted nothing, made NO accusation, and even said you may be right but….and made a point to be civil with a counterpoint and reference

            Twisted is right wow!!
          • Donal January 6, 2012 at 2:18 pm

            alex, answer the question:

            Who refers to Wheeler as a savior of this franchise?

            Or will you admit that is simply not true?
          • Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 2:31 pm

            Donal, if you are the #1 pitching prospect and #1 prospect of a franchise in disarey and also rebuilding aren;t you consider some in some way as the guy that will turn things around?? i mean, seriously, is not like anybody is calling him that, but aren’t most of us expecting wheeler, familia, harvey and mejia to come up and save the franchise??? isn’t that the reason why sandy and Co are not giving out large deals to pitchers?!? what do you think will happen if those prospect (especially our #1 ) come up and become bust?? doesn’t that set the franchise farther down even more!?!?
            Kay, moving on.. i seriously can’t have a baseball conversation with you.. don’t ask me a question if when i give my answer you’re gonna get bent out of shape instead of agree or disagree and move on…
            • Donal January 6, 2012 at 2:37 pm

              alex, who used the word “savior”? Why can’t you answer that?
            • Alex68 January 6, 2012 at 2:41 pm

              Same guy who said krod 88% saves rate was terrible but craig kimbrel’s 85% saves rate was great
              • Donal January 8, 2012 at 8:33 am

                nobody said that. Why do you prefer lying over and over to just admitting an easy truth?
            • Kay January 6, 2012 at 2:59 pm

              I didn’t get bent and responded civil, I got bent when you falsly accused me of something I didn’t do. Whatever dude get over yourself already.
      • Kay January 6, 2012 at 12:58 pm

        There goes that overused word savoir again. Funny I’ve never read him as being the savior, we must be reading different articles.

        Anyhow, you may be right, at this point we don’t know, but he hasn’t done anything to not “trust”.

        I think it’s safe to say, by looking at their WS rotation, the SF Giants know a thing or two about drafting pitching prospects. Putting any Mets mess aside, just the fact that they thought highly of him leads me to believe he’s the real deal.

        http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/the-giants-thumb-twiddling-act-is-starting-to-wear-on-their-fans?urn=mlb,wp28917

        “but each day it’s looking like a real possibility that Carlos Beltran (the guy we traded our #1 prospect for) is going to land a two or three year deal at a pretty reasonable rate. And when that happens I’m going to have a hard time controlling my fan rage.”
  • Donal January 6, 2012 at 12:16 pm

    Well, the Giants also have a lot of other pitchers and were in a playoff hunt with a desperate need for offence.
• Donal January 6, 2012 at 10:16 am

  Another difference between Generation K and now is we know who the next bunch is. Flumer, Mazzoni, Urbina, Leathersich, etc etc There is some real talent on its way up. We don’t have all our hopes pinned to 3 guys.

  The pitching is not the problem. Position players are another story.
• nathan January 6, 2012 at 10:26 am

  I am still not sold on our organizations pitching coaches. Some may scoff at this but it is a reality that an organization that is complete from low A to the majors produces better players. The Mets have had disconnects between the coaches in the minors and at the higher levels. In other words a pitcher shows up at camp and the coach works with him and they decide to drop a pitch then when he gets to AAA the coach has him pick it up again and changes his delivery to incorporate the pitch. This essentially sets the prospect back a few years. I loved Stotlymeyer but remember how much he pushed doc to throw a change up and how that changed his delivery and his performance dropped off as a result. I may be full of it but until we start producing guys that are not trying to develop pitches during their first three years in the majors I will be leery. I am most excited about Harvey due to his experience and better control. He may not become an ace but he has a better chance to develop into a solid presence in the ML rotation.
  • Markcomic1 January 6, 2012 at 4:56 pm

    Nathan, I love that you brought up Doc and Stotlymeyer. I remember that clear as day. I remember knowing Doc would get hurt and he did. Stotlymeyer wanted Doc to stop going for the strike out and start becoming more of a ground ball pitcher. He wanted him to use the change up as a way to induce those ground balls. He also changed Docs mechanics which was a terrible decision and its what led to Doc tearing his rotator cuff. Doc’s natural motion was over the top. It was how he threw since childhood up till he was in the majors. Changing his mechanics so late in his development was a huge error! Doc’s muscle memory was set, and going to three quarters forced him to use different muscles a bit more, first causing a strain, which created weakness, then finally a complete tear.

    Stotyleyer then starts fiddling with him to start throwing three quarters which was unnatural for Doc and bam! There goes the shoulder! He also had Doc lower his leg kick, which helped him generate power and was a key component of his mechanics. I can go on and on about it because it infuriated me then and still does today. It makes me so angry that Stotylmeyer is revered for being a bad pitching coach! He was always handed great pitchers, many of which did not listen to him and had their own routines. Cone, Clemens, Ojeda, Darling, etc. He just happened to always be in the right place at the right time and be working with pitchers who knew what they had to do to win.

    The Mets coaching staff has proven to be terrible in the past. They have not been able to develop any super star players with the exception of Reyes and Wright. Ike is still not a star, he has not played enough. Wright has tumbled backwards after working for a couple seasons with HOJO! UGH!

    That whole Howard Johnson Batting coach deal was terrible! How can a guy that as a player was always hit or miss, who was strike out or home run be a batting coach. He turned Wright into a mirror image of himself. Meanwhile when wright came up, he was lauded for his great ability as a two strike hitter who could hit the ball the other way with power. Hojo shows up and that is all gone! Wrights swing has been a mess since! Reyes, well the Mets crack medical team or training staff screwed that up for years.

    Which surprises me since Dr David Altcheck has always been such a highly respected orthopedist with a high rate of success. I don’t know all the details but, the Mets have become a bumbling franchise with terrible direction since the Wilpons bought out Doubleday. I think the only way this franchise turns around is if they sell the team. Sandy seems like a good baseball executive and he hired his guys to come in and change things here. It’s only been a short time but, unless some players start coming up from the minors, that make an immediate impact his tenure is a failure. Also they have to be players he, and his crack team either drafted or brought it. Not left overs from the Minaya years.

    Lastly, it has always upset me that no one, and I mean no one! Has ever called out stotylmeyer for the damage he had done to Doc’s career. Yeah, yeah I know Doc is a drug addict and was then but, still just focusing on that and never mentioning the great crime that was perpetrated on that magical arm of his by bad coaching is a great sin.
• srt January 6, 2012 at 11:41 am

  I’m just happy we’ve got some fine prospects that might be major league contributors in the future.
  Given the fact that this is probably all we’ll have to look forward to for a couple of years, I’m excited to see how they pan out.
• Metstheory22 January 6, 2012 at 12:16 pm

  Harvey, he should be the closest to helping.
  • Donal January 6, 2012 at 12:21 pm

    Actually, I think Familia is closer. He’ll most likely start the season in Buffalo with Harvey still at Bing. At least, thats the way it looks now. There won’t be a big gap between the 2, though.
    • Metstheory22 January 6, 2012 at 1:20 pm

      Tanks for the update. Still want to see Harvey. Heck, I’ll take anyone of them at this point.
• Mike Lloyd January 6, 2012 at 1:26 pm

  I’ve learned my lessons through the years, it seems this franchise and others always have these highly touted guys. Though, the Mets have the hype machine going 24/7. Who can forget David West, Julio Valera and the like even before Gen. K….I think under radar guys like the Gorski kid excite me more, but I feel because of his size and exposure to big college experience, Harvey excites me most. When he was drafted, most of the pre-eminent publications thought the Mets ‘reached’ a bit. It s made me feel better about the teams scouting to see it appears they were correct about the kids ability, rather than the experts who thought the team reached for him-regardless of which adminstration drafted him, he appears to be truly on track to be good to very good.
  • any January 6, 2012 at 2:04 pm

    I actually really like Gorski too. He could end up being one of those under the radar guys that becomes a solid part of the team. not everyone has to be a superstar stud prospect to become a valuable ML player.
• NJstuckinTX January 6, 2012 at 12:38 pm

  I am actually excited about Mejia to be the closer o’ the future.
• Donal January 6, 2012 at 1:33 pm

  I don’t think anyone excites me. I’m more excited that we have a system that can find, develop and promote this kind of talent. If they did this right and they end up with at least a legit #2 out the Wheeler, Harvey and Familia, then we’re ahead of the curve. We can also add in Mejia, Fulmer etc etc as more guys to look forward to.

  If thing go well, we’ll have a full rotation and a nice bullpen and a few extra pieces to trade over the next few years.
• Alex in CT January 6, 2012 at 1:42 pm

  I’ll get excited when just one of these top prospects do anything considerable at the Triple-A level. Wake me up whenever that happens.
  • Hellobrooklyn January 6, 2012 at 4:52 pm

    AAA is usually filled with has beens or 5 th outfielders and utility guys. Maybe a prospect or 2 blocked in the majors. AA is usually the big test for pitchers. They actually face other quality prospects in AA. Not a bad idea to send pitching prospects to AA for further development, stamina but usually by then you know what you have in your pitcher

    I think Harvey is going to be awesome. He has been dominant at all levels and in college where the games actually meant something to players fans and coaches he proved to be a good “pitcher” ,not just a good arm

    Familia is awesome. Is there a reason why most scouts feel Latin SP are better fit for the pen? Is it race and the whole ” black quarterback ” issue or is it his delivery and mechanics, which by the way have greatly improved?
    I do see Meija as better fit for relief but as a dominant reliever. Wheeler only makes me nervous because the Giants kinda gave up on him by trading him for a rental. They didn’t even resign Beltran this offseason and they still need him.
    I do love our pitching prospects and feel like skill wise they are more talented than Generation K ( they were way over hyped just like they over hyped Art Howe who was the worst manger in history. Someone should’ve questioned if either were better suited for the pen. No one could’ve predicted Wilson being a bust I swore he was going to be the next Roger Clemens. Who knew he was another Todd Van Poppel?)

    Bottom line the Mets have awesome pitching prospects. It would be a dream come true to see these guys start- Harvey, Familia, Wheeler Niese then one of Gee ,Gorski , Fulmer Mazonni starting and the other a long reliever with Meija closing and Holt Urbina Tapia Verrett in the pen and Leathersich as the 8th inning setup guy/ left handed specialist
• Hellobrooklyn January 6, 2012 at 4:58 pm

  * pitching prospect to *AAA* (not AA) for further development*