Mets Minors Recap: Ronny Mauricio Hits Two Homers in Left Field Debut

Ronny Mauricio, Photo by Richard Nelson

Triple-A Syracuse: Buffalo (30-36) 7, Syracuse (26-29) 4, Box Score

LF Ronny Mauricio 3-for-5, 2 HR (10), SB, .322 AVG/.908 OPS
1B Luke Voit 0-for-2, 2 BB, HBP, R, .250 AVG/1.016 OPS
C Tomás Nido 1-for-4, HR (1)

Mauricio hit two monster home runs totaling 872 feet and both of them were at least 111 mph off the bat. The switch-hitter was playing in his first professional game in left field and did have an error on a play early in the game. Mauricio had a couple of other plays in left field, including a fly ball that he handled fine.

Nido was making his return to Syracuse for the first time since a brief three-game stint in 2021 and he hit a 414-foot home run in the top of the ninth inning.

Ronny Mauricio had four hard hit balls on Thursday night in his pro debut as a left fielder:

111.7 mph, 431 foot HR
111.1 mph, 441 foot HR
106.9 mph single
95.0 mph groundout pic.twitter.com/ZUSyWBSMqY

— Mike Mayer (@mikemayer22) June 16, 2023

LHP David Peterson 6 IP, 7 H, 5 R (4 ER), 3 BB, 7 K, 4.94 ERA
RHP Jimmy Yacabonis 1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 6.75 ERA

The weird year for Peterson continued with another subpar performance that also included a balk and a disengagement violation.

On a roster note, right-hander Stephen Ridings was activated off the IL by the Mets and optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. Good news for the Mets that desperately need bullpen depth. Ridings, 27, pitched three one-inning rehab outings for the St. Lucie Mets, including a 1-2-3 with two strikeouts on Wednesday.

Double-A: Binghamton (29-29) 7, Portland (36-23) 3, Game 1 Box Score

2B Rowdey Jordan 1-for-3, 2B, BB, RBI, R, SB, .231 AVG/.771 OPS
CF Brandon McIlwain 1-for-2, 2 RBI, 2 BB, HR (5th), 2 R, SB, .246 AVG/.724 OPS
1B Joe Suozzi 2-for-2, HBP, 2 RBI, 2 R, HR (1), .327 AVG/.873 OPS

Jordan has a 1.172 OPS with more walks (9) than strikeouts (7) in the month of June. He’s playing mostly second base and center field.

RHP Luis Moreno 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 10 K, Win, 5.53 ERA

The 2023 season has been a struggle for the 24-year-old Moreno, but he’s allowed just three runs over 13 innings in his last two starts and he has 17 strikeouts in that span.

Double-A: Binghamton (30-29) 3, Portland (36-24) 2, Game 2 Box Score

LF Matt Rudick 1-for-3, BB, R, SB, .299 AVG/.951 OPS
CF Rowdey Jordan 1-for-3, HR (8th), 2 RBI, .234 AVG/.794 OPS
RF Brandon McIlwain 2-for-3, .253/.734 OPS

Jordan has five home runs in June in 44 at-bats after hitting only three in 131 at-bats between April and May. McIlwain has a .965 OPS and 11 RBIs in 13 June games. Backup catcher Matt O’Neill hit his fourth home run of the season.

RHP Christian Scott 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 9 K, 2.56 ERA (overall this year)
LHP Matt Minnick 1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, Save

Mets pitching prospect Christian Scott was lights out in his Double-A debut on his 24th birthday:

6 IP, 2 H, ER, 0 BB, 9 K

Set career-high in innings and tied career-high with 9 K's. His 23 whiffs led baseball for the day. He struck out Nick Yorke (#93 prospect in MLB) 3 times. pic.twitter.com/bz3ir82AEw

— Mike Mayer (@mikemayer22) June 16, 2023

Scott was terrific in his Double-A Debut that happened to land on his 24th birthday. The 2021 fifth round led all of stateside baseball (including the majors) with 23 whiffs (swings and misses) on Thursday night. Scott over his last five starts: 24 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 31 K, 0.75 ERA. He’s quickly becoming one of the top pitching prospects in the Mets system, as his fastball has been up to 98 mph recently and his slider has been a great swing-and-miss pitch.

Minnick was making his Mets organization (and season debut) after recently signing a minor league deal. The 27-year-old had a 1.81 ERA in Double-A last year for the Yankees.

High-A: Aberdeen (30-29) 4, Brooklyn (25-34) 3, Box Score

LF Alex Ramírez 1-for-3, 2 BB, RBI, .241 AVG/.703 OPS
DH Kevin Parada 0-for-4, HBP, .245 AVG/.717 OPS
RF Omar De Los Santos 2-for-4, 2B, 2 SB (24), .219 AVG/.599 SLG
2B Cesar Berbesi 1-for-2, 3B, 2 BB, RBI, R, SB, .234 AVG/.699 OPS

The 20-year-old Ramírez now has 20 walks in his last 28 games for Brooklyn.

RHP Jeffrey Colon 4.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 3 K, 5.40 ERA
RHP Wilkin Ramos 3.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K, 1.67 ERA
RHP Paul Gervase 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K, 1.35 ERA

The 22-year-old Ramos continues to have success with Brooklyn as a multi-inning reliever with a 1.67 ERA on the season. He has yet to allow a home run this year in 32 1/3 innings, and he has 38 strikeouts in that span.

Low-A: St. Lucie (22-36) 8, Palm Beach (34-26) 7, Box Score

CF Rhylan Thomas 4-for-5, R, 3 2B, .305 AVG/.812 OPS
SS Jett Williams 0-for-1, 3 BB, 2 R, HBP, .208 AVG/.733 OPS
3B Junior Tilien 2-for-4, HR (6th), 3 RBI, BB, 2 R, .248 AVG/.752 OPS
1B Jose Hernandez 2-for-4, 2 RBI, BB, .267 AVG/.967 OPS

The 20-year-old Tilien hit a game-winning three-run homer in the top of the eighth inning. Tilien has four home runs in June following a homerless May. The impressive on-base percentage for the 19-year-old Williams is up to .408 on the season.

JUNIOR TILIEN!!! He hits a two-out, 3-run homer in the 8th inning to give us an 8-6 lead! pic.twitter.com/ImWLYTybEm

— St. Lucie Mets (@stluciemets) June 16, 2023