Mets VP Tommy Tanous Talks Draft, Prospects, And More

I got the chance recently to sit down on the phone with Mets’ vice president of amateur and international scouting Tommy Tanous. Tanous has been with the Mets since 2010, and has worked his way up through the ranks to the current position he holds. The Mets’ first draft under Tanous came in 2012, in which 11 major leaguers were produced. The following year, the Mets selected Dominic Smith, Luis Guillorme, and Jeff McNeil in the same draft.

Tanous is now heading the Mets scouting department, as he prepares to lead his 10th draft for the organization. He’s drafted most of the top-line prospects that sit within the Mets’ system, including Matthew Allan, J.T. Ginn, Brett Baty, Mark Vientos, and helped in the discovery and signing of Francisco Alvarez and Ronny Mauricio.

When asked about the current state of the Mets farm system and how they’ve replenished since the trades of the Van Wagnenen era, Tanous says that he’s “Very positive. We’ve had quite a few trades in the last few years, and that will always take prospects away from you, but that is what the minor leagues are for; to strengthen the big league team. I’m really happy with how we’ve replenished that talent and I think what it makes us is a little bottom heavy, when you lose the likes of a Kelenic, a Dunn, a Kay, etc. You lose upper level prospects and it will take a little time for the Mauricio’s and the Viento’s, you know the babies, to fill that gap. Even guys like Alvarez, who we are super high on. But honestly, I’m super happy with how we’ve restocked.”

Tanous, when asked who he thought some of the more underrated prospects within the Mets system are, a few names immediately came to mind. “Tylor MeGill right off the bat would be one”, said Tanous. “He has really blossomed. Velocity has gone up, breaking ball has become sharper and tighter and uses it very effectively… I think he’ll be one of the surprises. Alexander Ramirez, a center fielder that we signed internationally. He’s incredibly tools and probably a five tool type player. He has a nice combination of power and speed that can play. I think Carlos Cortes is a great hitter who has had success everywhere he’s gone, including in some tough leagues. I’ll tell you what, Khalil Lee is a really good looking player. It was a chance to get a high impact player with a lot of skill sets that is in our Top-10.”

Megill is a tall right-handed pitcher who struck out ten over five innings in his season debut for Double-A Binghamton and has allowed just one run in 10 innings this year. When I asked Tanous if Megill profiles more as a starter or a reliever, he responded that he “think[s] it’s too early to tell, you’d have to see him this year as a starter. But a lot of guys break in as a starter and move to the pen. Very few guys go from the pen to the rotation, so it makes more sense to keep him as a starter for now. But currently, he’s performing well and maintaining his velocity as a starter. He has multiple weapons, so it’s probably difficult to say.”

Moving towards the 2021 draft, Tanous said he is excited by the high school class and the college pitchers. He did, however, say that he feels the college bats are the weakest of the bunch for this years draft. Tanous also feels that the draft moving from 40 rounds to 20 won’t have too much of a difference and that the approach will “be pretty similar” to previous drafts.

The main change in the change to the 2021 draft from the Mets will be within the analytics and professional development departments, according to Tanous. He said that the two departments are more involved in the process as compared to years prior,  creating an “open door” that allows information to be shared and the departments to function more effectively. Tanous credited several names within the Mets front office, including director of baseball analytics Ben Zauzmer and recently promoted Kevin Howard (now the assistant hitting coach after starting the season as farm director).

Tanous went on to mention that during the scouting process, one of the key traits that the Mets look for is baseball IQ, stating that he believes it is one of the harder traits to develop and it gives a prospect a leg up over those who don’t possess the trait.

Within the scouting department, Tanous had nothing but praise for his staff. He spoke to the hard work and dedication of his department, including the likes of amateur scouting director Marc Tramuta, international scouting director Steve Barningham, assistant scouting director Bryan Hayes, national crosschecker Doug Thurman, national hitting crosschecker Drew Toussaint, and assistant to the scouting director Tom Fleischman. He credited this group with being able to restock a system that traded away a slew Top-100 prospects within a two year period.

Focusing now on the big league club, Tanous believes that the goal of a title within 3-5 years is obtainable for the Mets. “Absolutely”, he said, “absolutely I think it is obtainable.” He believes that between the current talent on the major league roster, the talent in the farm system, and the team’s newfound financial flexibility, the Mets are as well positioned as anyone to make a run for a title in the coming years.

Overall, Tanous looks highly on the current state of the Mets. Between major league talent, a replenished farm system, upcoming draft position, and financial capital, the Mets are on the up swing and should be for a while. He admits that the system could be a lot stronger if the Mets had held onto certain prospects and had not made certain trades, but thinks that Sandy Alderson and Zack Scott have put the right processes in place to be able to continue to build the Mets’ farm system and reach the levels of the Rays and Padres.