Here are some takeaways from Thursday’s Q&A with the Mets minor league officials (@MetsFarmReport) on Twitter.
- When asked who their top power hitter in the system was, Mets officials didn’t hesitate to mention Dustin Lawley. I asked a followup question and wondered if Lawley would stick at Triple-A after the Mets jumped him all the way from Advanced-A St. Lucie last season to help the Las Vegas 51s during their postseason. They said he would stay at Vegas and play both outfield and third base. As I’ve been saying since last September, while everyone is fixated on Cesar Puello, Lawley is the one to watch and the prospect who could come up and help the Mets in 2014.
- The Mets are so high on last year’s first-round pick, 1B Dominic Smith, that they are considering having him skip Low-A Brooklyn and begin the new season at Class-A Savannah. That was something they never even considered with Brandon Nimmo and Gavin Cecchini. It’s a sign of how far more advanced they believe Smith is,
- Speaking of Brandon Nimmo, the Mets attribute his poor showing offensively to injuries. As most of you know, the Wyoming native was hampered all season by a wrist injury. The Mets expect him to bounce back this season and are also counting on a power growth. He will have a lot of eyes on him in 2014.
- If you’re wondering what led the Mets to promoting Frank Viola to Pitching Coach at Triple-A last week, the Mets are very high on his ability to work with our young pitchers. With some of the organization’s top prospects now heading to Las Vegas, the Mets wanted Viola to be there to oversee their development and get them ready for a big league callup.
- The Mets are still very high on Cesar Puello who they said is a Top 10 prospect regardless of what’s being published. When asked who’s stock soared the highest after Winter Ball, they boasted that it was Wilmer Flores who sported a .403/.447/.545 batting line in Venezuela. Then they added, “reports (on Flores) were promising.”
Quick Hits
Second base prospect Dilson Herrera, may get time playing time at shortstop this year at Class-A Savannah.
If you were wondering if Kevin Plawecki would start the season at Double-A Binghamton, the Mets confirmed it. They said they are very high on him.
News Flash… The Mets consider righthander Jenrry Mejia a starting pitcher and not a reliever. Thankfully…
Gavin Cecchini will hit his fair share of home runs, but they see him as more of a well rounded player and complete hitter.
The Mets called the following players sleepers: Champ Stuart, Robert Coles, Ricky Jacquez, Robert Whalen, Chris Flexen, Tyler Bashlor and Jhoan Urena. I’m very high on Whalen, Flexen, Urena and Coles.
