Francisco Alvarez, Photo by Rick Nelson

Francisco Álvarez and Mark Vientos combined to hit five home runs this week as the entire Mets organization experienced a power surge. Let’s look at how the rest of the minor-league system did in a homer-heavy week.

Triple-A Syracuse

The Mets took four of six from the Norfolk Tides as they improve to 25-40 on the year.

Daniel Palka led Syracuse with 11 hits in the series, with four doubles and two home runs, in 25 at-bats. Palka is tied for first in the Mets organization with 15 home runs while slashing .265/.354/.531. He is rumored to get called up to the major-league squad.

Mark Vientos also had a big week smacking three home runs while driving in seven, boosting his OPS to .920 in June and .843 for the season. The Mets also got two home runs apiece from JT Riddle and Luke Ritter.

Thomas Szapucki secured the lone win amongst Syracuse starters in the series, allowing three runs on four hits and a walk while striking out eight in five innings. The lefthander is now 1-4 with a 3.60 ERA in 10 Triple-A starts.

Double-A Binghamton

The Rumble Ponies dropped five of seven (including a previously rescheduled game) to the Bowie Baysox.

The Francisco Álvarez show continued this week as the 20-year-old backstop went 8-for-22 with two doubles and two home runs. Álvarez is now slashing .322/.397/.780 with seven home runs in June and .284/.360/.567 on the season.

Ronny Mauricio also had a strong series, going 7-for-25 with two doubles and two home runs. Brett Baty went 7-for-27 with a double and a home run as he extended his hit streak to eleven games.  Baty is slashing .322/.385/.492 with three home runs in 59 at-bats in June.

Carlos Cortes had arguably the biggest week offensively in Binghamton, hitting three home runs and driving in eight. The 2018 third-round pick is hitting .233/.320/.407 in 25 games following a demotion from Syracuse.

Jose Butto made another solid start to earn his fourth win with the Rumble Ponies, allowing a run in six innings on five hits and two walks while striking out five. Butto has been charged with just four earned runs in his last three starts (17 innings) as his ERA improves to 3.40.

Alex Valverde delivered another impressive outing as well with eight strikeouts in six innings, allowing a run on four hits and a walk. The 25-year-old right-hander has 25 strikeouts in his last three starts (15.2 innings) with a 3.45 ERA over that span.

High-A Brooklyn

The Cyclones split eight games this week, including a pair of doubleheaders, with the Wilmington Blue Rocks. Brooklyn is now 28-35.

JT Schwartz led the Cyclones with eight hits, including a double and a home run, in 21 at-bats while adding his third stolen base. The 22-year-old first baseman is now slashing .349/.397/.460 in June, playing to his contact-over-power profile.

Brandon McIlwain went 6-for-13 with two doubles and a triple, earning a promotion to Binghamton in the process. Tanner Murphy also picked up six hits in nine at-bats, adding a triple and his first home run of the year.

Nick Zwack delivered Brooklyn’s best pitching performance of the week, shutting out Wilmington over six innings while allowing just four hits and striking out three. The left-hander now has a 2.17 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP in 29 innings with the Cyclones this season.

Garrison Bryant earned a win with six innings of one-run ball, allowing three hits and two walks while striking out four. Bryant, who’s alternated between a starter and bulk reliever this season, is now 2-1 with a 3.92 ERA.

Junior Santos turned in another solid outing as well, allowing a run on three hits in 5.2 innings while punching out four. Santos has allowed just three runs over his last three starts (16.2 innings) lowering his ERA to 4.04.

Low-A St. Lucie

The St. Lucie Mets dropped four of six to the Tampa Tarpons as they fall to 40-22. However, with their win Wednesday night St. Lucie claimed the Florida State League East Division first-half title.

William Lugo led the Mets with seven hits, including a double, in 21 at-bats. The 22-year-old shortstop is now batting .256/.351/.387 with four home runs in his first season with St. Lucie.

Stanley Consuegra hit another two home runs and stole three bases in a 5-for-21 series. The outfielder has a .773 OPS with seven home runs and eight steals this year.

Alex Ramirez only picked up two hits in the series, but both were home runs. Ramirez also drew six walks and stole three bases. The 19-year-old has cooled off in June, going just 10-for-48, though he’s still slashing .293/.356/.458 on the season.

Dominic Hamel was impressive on the pitching front, allowing just a run on one hit and four walks while striking out seven over 6.2 innings. Hamel is now 4-1 with a 4.25 ERA in 48.2 innings. Javier Atencio also struck out seven in five innings, though he allowed four runs on five walks and four hits.

Dominican Summer League/Florida Complex League

Simon Juan has gotten off to a slow start in the DSL going 3-for-13 this week with a home run. Willy Fanas had a strong week, however, with seven hits in 19 at-bats.

Hector Rodriguez has stood out in the FCL with 14 hits in his first 34 at-bats with a double and a triple. The 18-year-old infielder slashed .301/.376/.472 in 123 at-bats last year in the DSL.

Organizational Leaders

Batting

AVG – Brandon McIlwain (BRK/BNG) – .302

OPS – Francisco Álvarez (BNG) – .928

HR – Francisco Álvarez/Daniel Palka (SYR) – 15

SB – Omar De Los Santos (SLU) – 36

Pitching (min. 20 innings)

ERA – Nathan Lavender (BRK) – 0.65

SO – Alex Valverde (BNG) – 70

WHIP – Keyshawn Askew (SLU) – 0.82

Players of the Week

Offensive: Daniel Palka, 1B/OF Syracuse

Palka had a huge week with six extra-base hits, including two home runs. The veteran is now riding a 12-game hit streak while going 17-for-51 with two doubles and two homers in that span, raising his season OPS to .885.

A 30-year-old first baseman with a career MLB slash line of .218/.277/.433 obviously won’t draw the same excitement as players like Mark Vientos or Francisco Álvarez, but Palka is certainly making a case for another shot in the majors. He’s shown that he can hit for power–he had 27 home runs with the White Sox in 2018. Furthermore, Palka’s skillset could fill the Mets’ need for a left-handed DH or bat off the bench.

Pitching: Dominic Hamel, RHP St. Lucie

There were a few solid pitching performances in the Mets’ system this week, but Hamel stood out allowing just one hit over 6 2/3 innings while racking up seven strikeouts.

Hamel, a third-round pick in 2021 and the Mets’ 11th-best prospect according to Baseball America, has been somewhat inconsistent this season but he’s looked dominant at times. He features a two-seam fastball that sits in the mid-90s with movement and a promising slider in the low-80s while occasionally working in a curveball and changeup.

If Hamel can continue to string together quality starts he could be in line for a mid-season promotion to Brooklyn. The 23-year-old right-hander has a 4.25 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP with a 9.8/9 strikeout rate through 11 starts in St. Lucie.

Transaction

  • RHP Alec Kisena – Transferred to AAA Syracuse from AA Binghamton
  • OF Quinn Brodey – Transferred to AAA Syracuse from AA Binghamton
  • OF Brandon McIlwain – Transferred to AA Binghamton from A+ Brooklyn

Upcoming Schedule: June 21-26

AAA Syracuse: @ Rochester

AA Binghamton: vs. Reading

High-A Brooklyn: vs. Jersey Shore

Low-A St. Lucie: @ Palm Beach