Four Mets prospects were ranked in the top-100 list that FanGraphs published on Thursday: Drew Gilbert, Jett Williams, Jeremy Rodriguez and Christian Scott. Two of the four were acquired at last season’s trade deadline. All four received future value grades of 50.
The Mets’ highest-ranked prospects were Gilbert and Williams at No. 52 and 54, respectively — contrary to MLB Pipeline, which put Williams at No. 45 and Gilbert at No. 53.
The Mets acquired Gilbert last summer in the Justin Verlander trade, along with Ryan Clifford. He was a first-round pick by the Astros in the 2022 draft. Gilbert, who had only been putting up a modest .713 OPS for Houston’s Double-A team, broke out with a .325 average and .984 OPS in 35 games for Double-A Binghamton. Between three levels and two organizations, Gilbert posted a .289/.381/.487 batting line last season. He swatted 18 home runs in the process.
FanGraphs mentioned in its write-up that Gilbert had surprised the writers with how well he’s performed, particularly in the power department.
“Before the 2022 draft, Gilbert was written up here as a potential top-of-the-order catalyst who I thought was more likely to be a good fourth outfielder due to modest power,” Eric Longenhagen and Tess Taruskin wrote. “So far in pro ball, Gilbert is performing more like a do-everything player with a balanced hit and power skill set, and just enough center field defense to project there in the big leagues.”
Gilbert is only 5-foot-9, but FanGraphs noted his plus speed in the outfield, in addition to his ability to attack pitches low in the zone. Gilbert is one of the Mets’ most well-rounded prospects, thus earning the nod of the team’s best prospect from the FanGraphs crew.
Coming two spots later was Williams, who’s also listed as a center fielder. Williams was drafted as a shortstop, and has primarily played there so far in the Mets’ minor league system. But he played 180 innings in center last season, and it’s possible the Mets see him as a fit there going forward. FanGraphs wrote that “Williams simply mishandles the baseball too much to be a good shortstop right now and doesn’t have a ‘from the hole’ cannon.” The write-up compared his defense to Roman Quinn and Billy Hamilton, players who once had similar scouting reports as Williams and ended up in center field.
A first-round pick in 2022, Williams had a strong season for Single-A St. Lucie and High-A Brooklyn. He posted a .422 OBP — higher than his .410 slugging percentage — in 79 Single-A games, then batted .299 with a .451 OBP in 36 High-A games. He added some power during his stint with Brooklyn too, hitting seven home runs with a .567 slugging percentage. He walks nearly as often as he strikes out, and had more walks than strikeouts with Brooklyn (33 to 32). He struggled upon his call-up to Binghamton, but only in a six-game sample.
“It’s too soon to call him a do-everything, five-tool prospect, but Williams isn’t far off, ” Longenhagen and Taruskin wrote. “He has a sizable hole in his swing at the top of the strike zone, which is atypical of a compact hitter like this. But his feel for the strike zone is excellent, his hitting hands are super explosive, and Jett can adjust to breaking balls by bending in his lower half in a way that is rare even for good hitters.”
Then, coming in near the bottom of the list at No. 96 was Rodriguez, a Dominican prospect the Mets acquired in the Tommy Pham trade. Rodriguez is only 17 years old, but FanGraphs said he has an “unusually high floor for a teenage prospect thanks to his defense and bat-to-ball ability.”
Longenhagen and Taruskin cited Rodriguez’s strong 2023 season in the Dominican Summer League as a reason for his increased stock. At the time of the trade, he’d batted .246 with a .740 OPS in 38 games. In 13 games for the Mets’ affiliate, he batted .422 with a 1.247 OPS and 11 walks compared to only four strikeouts. He put up a .411 OBP and .878 OPS overall. FanGraphs wrote that his contact rates were high and chase rates were low, which profiles well going forward. He “tracks pitches with bird-of-prey precision” and can defend well at shortstop, too.
The last Mets prospect in the top 100 was breakout pitcher Christian Scott. A former Florida Gator, Scott was drafted by the Mets in the fifth round of the 2021 draft. He had modest success in 2022 before rising to another level in 2023. He put up a 2.28 ERA in six starts for Brooklyn, then a 2.47 ERA in 12 starts for Binghamton. He struck out 11 per nine innings compared to a minuscule 1.2 walks per nine.
FanGraphs mentioned that his velocity was up to an average of 94-95 mph. He has “violent” mechanics with a “pretty nasty head whack,” but the writers said they feel good about projecting him as a mid-rotation starter in the future. He’s also tweaked his changeup and turned it into more of a splitter that sits in the mid-to-high 80s.
Not making the list were two other prospects the Mets acquired last summer, Clifford and Luisangel Acuña. Both were placed in MLB Pipeline’s ranking, with Acuña all the way up at No. 66. In any case, the Mets have significantly boosted their farm system with the trades they made in 2023.
Former Mets prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong was ranked at No. 20, despite going 0-for-14 in his debut for the Cubs last season. Right above him at No. 19 was River Ryan — brother of former Mets prospect Ryder Ryan, who the Mets acquired for Jay Bruce in 2017.
Jackson Holliday was FanGraphs’ No. 1 prospect in baseball, and was the only prospect to get a future value grade of 70.
