Photo by Rick Nelson

Brett Baty powered Binghamton with three home runs and 13 RBIs in a six-game series.  Here’s a closer look at Baty’s performance and other standouts in the Mets’ system this week.

Triple-A Syracuse

Syracuse split a six-game set with the Omaha Storm Chasers. They’re now 45-54 on the season.

Mark Vientos and Francisco Álvarez hit a pair of home runs each in the series. Vientos went 7-for-20 while Álvarez was 5-for-20. He also added two doubles and seven walks.

Vientos, meanwhile, improved his OPS to .874 on the season. He’s slashing .267/.350/.524 with 19 home runs while also posting over a 1.200 OPS against lefties.

Travis Blankenhorn and Gosuke Katoh also homered for the Mets in the series. Katoh also added two triples and a double.

On the mound, Connor Grey was the lone Syracuse starter to pitch at least five innings this week. He allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits and a walk while striking out three.

Bryce Montes de Oca made a couple of appearances out of the bullpen. The hard-throwing righthander allowed a run on two hits and a walk over three innings while punching out eight, earning a save in Sunday’s contest. Montes de Oca finished July with a 1.64 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 11 innings. His K/9 is up to 14.14 with a BB/9 of 5.14.

Double-A Binghamton

The Rumble Ponies dropped four of six to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats as they fall to 35-60.

Brett Baty was the headliner this week in Binghamton. The 22-year-old third baseman went 12-for-26 with three home runs, two doubles, and 13 RBIs. The huge series was an appropriate way for Baty to finish July — he hit .365/.435/.688 with eight home runs across 96 at-bats. Baty now has an outstanding .921 OPS with 16 home runs on the season.

Ronny Mauricio had a solid series as well going 7-for-25 with two home runs, a double, and two stolen bases. The shortstop is now slashing .249/.290/.475 with 18 home runs and 13 steals.

Garrison Bryant earned the lone win amongst Binghamton starters, his first since his promotion from High-A Brooklyn. Bryant allowed four runs (all coming on three home runs) on five hits while striking out three. Jose Butto allowed three runs on four hits and three walks while striking out seven.

High-A Brooklyn

The Cyclones won four of six against the Hudson Valley Renegades to improve to 48-48 on the year.

Alex Ramirez continues to swing a hot bat in Brooklyn. The 19-year-old outfielder had seven hits, including three home runs and a double, in 23 at-bats. Ramirez is slashing .300/.360/.575 with five home runs in 80 at-bats in High-A. Ramirez hit six home runs in 271 at-bats with St. Lucie this year.

Stanley Consuegra also went 7-for-23 in the series with a home run and a double. Consuegra has a .262/.340/.500 slash line so far in Brooklyn with three home runs and three stolen bases.

Jose Mena, Shervyen Newton, JT Schwartz, and Joe Suozziwould each add a home run in the series as well.

Meanwhile, the Cyclones’ starting pitching continues to excel. Luis Moreno led the way this week with six scoreless innings, allowing just a walk and two hits while striking out seven. Moreno, signed in 2019 from the Dominican Republic, has a 2.90 ERA with a 0.99 WHIP in 40.1 innings with Brooklyn.

Dominic Hamel also turned in six shutout innings, allowing four hits and two walks while punching out six. Carson Seymour led the Cyclones with nine strikeouts, allowing one run on four hits and three walks. Seymour has 30 strikeouts in his last three starts (18.2 innings) while lowering his ERA to 3.68.

Low-A St. Lucie

The St. Lucie Mets split a six-game set with the Palm Beach Cardinals. They’re now 55-40 on the year.

William Lugo led St. Lucie offensively with eight hits, three home runs, and a double in 26 at-bats. The 20-year-old shortstop has been hot lately as he finishes the month with a .286/.352/.587 line and five home runs in 63 at-bats. Lugo improved his OPS to .770 on the season.

Raul Beracierta, Junior Tilien, and Tanner Murphy added two home runs apiece this week. Beracierta finished a strong July slashing .329/.364/.575 with five home runs in 73 at-bats.

Keyshawn Askew earned a win Saturday with six scoreless innings, scattering two hits and two walks while striking out eight. Askew, a 10th-round pick in 2021 out of Clemson, has been excellent this year in St. Lucie. He’s now 4-0 with a 1.93 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and a 12.34 K/9 through 46.2 innings.

Florida Complex League

Karell Paz had another impressive week in the FCL going 7-for-17 with three home runs, two doubles, and a triple. Paz, signed in May out of the Dominican Republic, is slashing .314/.397/.647 through 52 FCL at-bats.

Kevin Villavicencio went 7-for-16 with a home run while Jefrey De Los Santos was 6-for-18 with a double, triple, and a home run.

Dominican Summer League

Outfielder Jaycey Benita hit a pair of home runs to raise his OPS to .843 through 46 DSL at-bats. Simon Juan went 4-for-19 with a pair of doubles and a stolen base.

Organizational Leaders

Batting

AVG – Brett Baty (BNG) – .306

OPS – Brett Baty – .921

HR – Francisco Álvarez (SYR) – 21

SB – Omar De Los Santos (SLU) – 50

Pitching (min. 20 innings)

ERA – Nathan Lavender (BRK) – 0.60

SO – Jose Butto (BNG) – 102

WHIP – Stephen Nogosek (SYR) – 0.77

Players of the Week

Offensive – Brett Baty, 3B Binghamton

Brett Baty capped a stellar month with his best series of the season going 12-for-26 with three home runs and 13 RBIs. Baty now leads the organization in batting average (.306) and OPS (.921).

Baty, the Mets’ second-best prospect and No. 39 in baseball according to Baseball America, continues to display excellent contact ability that allows him to tap into his natural raw power and hit the ball hard to all fields. While he may have been overshadowed at times by Francisco Alvarez in Binghamton, Baty is not far behind the Mets’ top prospect. He should get the call to Syracuse soon as he continues to climb closer to the Majors.

Pitching – Luis Moreno, P Brooklyn

Moreno earned his first win in High-A with a dominant six-inning shutout, holding Hudson Valley to two hits and a walk while striking out seven.

Moreno struggled to a 5.42 ERA last year with St. Lucie. The 6-foot-2 right-hander altered his pitch mix this year, relying primarily on a sinker-curveball combo, and it’s paid dividends so far in 2022. Moreno was 4-0 with a 2.68 ERA across 40.1 innings to start the year in low-A.

He’s been able to match his success since his promotion to Brooklyn in early June. Moreno lowered his ERA to 2.90 with the Cyclones with a WHIP of 0.99. He doesn’t have overpowering stuff but relies on deception to generate swings and misses or soft contact (a 58.3% ground ball rate). Ultimately, Moreno’s pitch mix will likely suit him best as a reliever long term but he could become a player worth monitoring if he’s able to maintain his success down the stretch this year.

Upcoming Schedule – August 2-7

Triple-A Syracuse – @ Lehigh Valley

Double-A Binghamton – @ Somerset

High-A Brooklyn – vs. Winston-Salem

Low-A St. Lucie – vs. Daytona