JT Schwartz. Photo by Ed Delany, MMO

First base is a tough position to break through in the New York Mets organization when you consider who is at the Major League level (Pete Alonso), and at Triple-A (Mark Vientos). However, that should not dismiss the start to the season that JT Schwartz is having for the Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies.

The fourth-round pick out of UCLA in 2021 has a slash line of .271/.352/.500 with two home runs, 15 RBIs, and a .852 OPS. His 15 RBIs are the most of any player in the Eastern League. He is also tied for third in the league in doubles (5).

Schwartz has had an excellent series for the Rumble Ponies this week against the Hartford Yard Goats. In five games, the left-handed first baseman is 7-for-18 with two home runs and eight RBIs, including a home run on Friday night:

Heading into the season, Schwartz was not a Top 30 prospect in the Mets system on Mets Minors and a lot of the reasoning came from not having much power numbers at the professional level. Here is what David Crocco had to say about Schwartz back in March:

“Schwartz typically has a solid batting approach. He keeps things simple, makes excellent contact, and has reasonably good walk rates of 11.6%. He has yet to adequately develop the power numbers to profile as a major league first baseman. Over 482 professional at-bats, he has hit just six home runs.”

While the power numbers have not been there, there is something to be said about a player that just makes consistent contact and can work the count. In the first 10 games this season, the 23-year-old has seen 4.37 pitches per plate appearances and has had a walk rate of 9.3% according to FanGraphs.

When Schwartz is making contact, it’s usually for extra bases. Out of his 13 hits, 7 of them have been for extra bases with five doubles. In the early stages of the year, he is getting the ball more in the air as evident by his fly ball percentage (39.5% according to FanGraphs).

Last year at High-A Brooklyn, Schwartz showed some good things in his first full professional season. He had a slash line of .273/.356/.400 with 6 home runs, 49 RBIs, and 46 walks.

He led the Cyclones in hits (109), was second in RBIs and third in walks. While he did have the fourth-most strikeouts (89), he was able to be a consistent part of that batting order.

The problem for Schwartz is that first base is known as a power position. When he was at UCLA, he had eight home runs in 44 games during his redshirt sophomore season (third on the team) and he had the best slugging percentage (.628) and OPS (1.142) of any player on the roster in 2021. The power is there to a degree, but it’s tough to teach a consistent approach (.514 OBP) to go with those numbers.

During his year with the Cyclones, Schwartz did talk about the swing change that he made. In an interview with WFUV, he said the adjustment to his swing was more geared towards the competition in the South Atlantic League and trying to find more bat speed by making the swing level more compact.

Having a good start at an upper level of the farm system is not something that should be ignored, especially when it is Schwartz’s first taste of pro ball.