Brett Baty, Photo by Dan Fritz
The Arizona Fall League announced the rosters for the upcoming 2021 season that starts on October 13. The prospect-filled AFL returns after the pandemic cancelled the 2020 season.
The Mets will be one of five teams (Brewers, D’Backs, Tigers, and Rockies as well) providing players to the Salt River Rafters roster. Here’s the Mets contingent of players headed to the AFL:
- 3B/LF Brett Baty – Our No. 2 Mets prospect and No. 45 in baseball according to MLB Pipeline
- OF/2B Carlos Cortes – Our No. 10 Mets prospect
- C Hayden Senger – Our No. 20 Mets prospect
- INF Wilmer Reyes – Our No. 28 Mets prospect
- RHP Colin Holderman
- RHP Connor Grey
- RHP Garrison Bryant
- RHP Brian Metoyer
It’s a solid position player group with all of them being ranked in our Top 30 Mets prospects. On the flip side, none of the pitchers showed up in our recent Top 30 Mets prospect list update.
The 21-year-old Baty is coming off a regular season that saw him post an .855 OPS between High-A Brooklyn and Double-A Binghamton.
The 24-year-old Cortes had 41 extra base hits in 79 games this year for the Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies. He played exclusively in the outfield in 2021 after playing 122 of 123 of his first pro games at second base.
Senger, 24, is a strong defensive catcher that posted a combined .770 OPS between Brooklyn and Binghamton this season.
Reyes, 23, missed a large portion of the 2021 due to a knee injury, but was able to make it back towards the end of the season for an impressive finish. He had an .892 OPS between the FCL Mets and Brooklyn. The talented defensive shortstop has also played second, third, first, center field, and left field.
From the pitching side, Holderman is the name that jumps out to me after getting to see him live earlier this season. I watched him close out a game for Double-
A Binghamton in which he hit up to 99 mph and got multiple swings and missed on his high spin rate slider.
The right-handed Metoyer struck out a whopping 52 batters in 36 innings combined for Brooklyn and Binghamton, though he did walk 19 in that span. Bryant missed most of the season with an injury and Grey started the year pitching Chicago Dogs in the American Association.
The Salt River Rafters play at Salt River field, the only stadium that will use the Automated Ball-Strike System. The AFL will also be used to test a ban on shifting and bigger bases.
