The Mets have many relievers to move this deadline, and late at night on July 30, they traded the first of them by sending A.J. Minter to the Minnesota Twins for Bruin Agbayani and Billy Amick.
Bruin’s last name should be familiar because his father, Benny Agbayani,was a fan-favorite Met from 1998-2001, slashing .282/.372/.461/.833 with 35 home runs in 322 games. He will be forever remembered for his walk-off home run in the 2000 NLDS, and maybe someday his son can share a similar moment.
Bruin Agbayani. Photo credit: MLB Draft League
Who is Bruin Agbayani?
Agbayani was taken out of high school in the sixth round of the 2025 MLB Draft and signed slightly above-slot. He has only played fifteen total games since he was drafted due to a shoulder injury and has slashed .263/.432/.316/.748. He is a left-handed hitter who profiles best at third base or second base, but has experience at shortstop. He is known for having very good bat-to-ball skills and pitch recognition, and there is some belief power could come as he continues to grow. When talking with MLB.com in 2025, Agbayani described his play as, “kind of a scrappy [style]. Just scrappy kids, just having fun playing baseball.”
In 2025, he was the Gatorade Player of the Year in Hawaii.
What Do the Prospect Reports Like About Abgayani?
Fangraphs, heading into the 2026 season, gave Agbayani a future hit tool value of 60, which means he has the potential to develop a plus-hit tool, and a 40 power tool which is below-average and which projects to being an 8-12 HR hitter.
They wrote, “He’s a physical, lefty-hitting infielder with great hand-eye coordination and barrel feel, but below-average bat speed.”
Baseball America listed him at 405 overall on their 2025 draft board heading into the event, writing “Agbayani has a solid history as a patient hitter with a good understanding of the zone and a line-drive stroke with gap power. His swing features a bat tip and hand hitch in his load but he has the hand speed, timing and balance to make that work against better pitching.”
They also added he hit up to 109 mph, showing there could be some untapped power potential.
Pipeline is more bullish on his power potential than other outlets, putting his future value at a 45 (12-15 HRs) but has his hit tool at a 50. On him, they wrote, “He routinely finds the barrel with outstanding bat speed and while he’s a hit-over-power type, there is some thump, especially to his pull side, which was on display when he ripped a 106 mph triple to right-center field in the MLB Draft Combine High School Game last June. There should be extra-base impact to come in the future as well.”
The Future
Agbayani is currently on the injured list with a shoulder injury he sustained in May, and a timeline to return has not been announced yet. The Single-A season ends on September 6, so he still has a little over a month to return and get into game action this season. Agbayani is the second injured prospect the Mets acquired after Cole Mathis. Mathis returned to play a few weeks after his trade.
Agbayani is only 19, and due to his time missed this season, he’ll likely return to Single-A in 2027. He has a long road and multiple levels of the minors before he would have a shot to make the major league club, and at this point is largely a lottery ticket, but his strong bat-to-ball profile gives him a solid floor to build off of.
