2023 St. Lucie Season Recap: Reigning FSL Champions Fall to the Bottom

Coming off of arguably their best season in 2022 which included winning the Florida State League Championship, St. Lucie struggled to find that same momentum in 2023 as they fell down to the bottom in both the first and second halves of the season.

St. Lucie ended the first half with a 24-41 record (.369 winning percentage) and the second half very similar at 20-43 (.317). Overall St. Lucie was 44-84 on the season (.344).

Jett Williams, Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

TOP 30 PROSPECTS

Though there wasn’t much excitement surrounding their performance as a team in 2023, St. Lucie had numerous prospects come through their affiliate this season who made strong contributions to St. Lucie’s roster. A few of the Mets’ 2023 draft picks also made their professional debuts with St. Lucie this season.

The Mets’ roster at various times throughout the season was highlighted by some of the Mets’ top 30 prospects, including:

Shortstop Jett Williams (No. 3): During his time with St. Lucie, Williams batted .249/.422/.410, with a .832 OPS. He hit for 12 doubles, six triples, six home runs, and had 35 RBIs. He also showed his poise and control at the plate with a massive 69 walks. He stole 32 bases with the Mets’ Low-A affiliate and had 25 runs scored. He was called up to Brooklyn at the end of July.
Third baseman Jacob Reimer (No. 13): During his time in Port St. Lucie, Reimer batted .280/.412/.392, with an OPS of .804. He had 10 doubles, six home runs, drove in 37, walked an impressive 44 times, and scored 48 runs in an impressive couple months in Low-A.
Right-handed pitcher Calvin Ziegler (No. 19): After recovering all year from a shoulder injury, Ziegler appeared in a single inning at the end of the year and struck out three batters.
Catcher Ronald Hernandez (No. 20): Promoted from the FCL at the end of that season, he had just a .574 OPS (though a ton of walks) in 39 plate appearances to end the year.
Left-handed pitcher Luis Rodriguez (No. 21): The 20-year appeared in 13 FSL games. He was 0-1 with a 4.30 ERA. He was 2-for-2 in save opportunities as well over the course of 23 innings. He struck out 18 and had a 1.17 WHIP.
Two-way player Nolan McLean (No. 23): After making his debut September 3, he went 1-for-9 at the plate and allowed one run in 3.1 innings.
Shortstop Diego Mosquera (No. 24): While with St. Lucie, he hit .229/.354/.284, with a .638 OPS. He had four doubles, a triple, five RBIs, walked 17 times and scored 16 runs.
Outfielder Nick Morabito (No. 28): In 27 games with St. Lucie, Morabito hit .286/.403/.378, with a .781 OPS.
Right-handed pitcher Kade Morris (No. 30): Morris made his professional debut in one game with the FCL and threw in one game with St. Lucie as well. In his one outing with St. Lucie he threw 2 1/3 innings, giving up one hit, one run, two walks, and struck out three.

PITCHING

St. Lucie had a few notable pitchers: left-handed pitcher Felipe De La Cruz, right-handed pitcher Saul Garcia, and Elliot Johnstone.

De La Cruz had one of the stronger years among the 50+ pitchers that came through Port St. Lucie in 2023. He was 3-6 with St. Lucie in 2023. Over the course of 90.1 innings, he struck out 114 and gave up 47 earned runs on 92 hits. He had a WHIP of 1.47 with St. Lucie.

Garcia in 2023 was 6-9 with a 5.04 ERA. Over the course of 67.1 innings, he struck out 96 and had a 1.44 WHIP.

Right-handed pitcher Elliot Johnstone spent all of 2023 with St. Lucie as a relief pitcher. He was 3-4 this season with five saves and a 6.32 ERA.

COACHING STAFF

Manager – Gilbert Gomez

Bench Coach – Yucary De La Cruz

Hitting Coach – Eduardo Nunez

Pitching Coach – Daniel McKinney

Development Coach – Regan Saulnier*

Performance Coach – Jake Allen

Athletic Trainer – Anthony Olivieri

*Saulnier represented the Mets’ second female coach in the history of the organization. She was with the Los Angeles Angels in 2022 and also spent time with the Cincinnati Reds and Minnesota Twins prior to joining the Angels. Saulnier follows Gretchen Aucoin as the second female coach. Aucoin was the development coach for the FCL Mets in 2022.