Mets first base prospect Peter Alonso is at camp early as he continues to work on his defense. He finished off the 2018 year playing in the Arizona Fall League to help hone his craft at the position.

He also worked hard with Tim Teufel during the Instructional League back in 2017. He’s a consensus Top 100 prospect in baseball with his highest ranking coming from Baseball Prospectus at No. 40.

Alonso hit .285/.395/.579 with 31 doubles, 36 home runs, and 119 RBIs between the Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies and the Triple-A Las Vegas 51s during the 2018 regular season. Mets manager Mickey Callaway and GM Brodie Van Wagenen have both said that the 24-year-old will get a chance to win the first base job this spring.

Left-handed starter Anthony Kay made his pro debut last season with a 4.26 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, and 9.0 K/9 in 122.2 innings between the A-Ball Columbia Fireflies and Advanced-A St. Lucie Mets.

Kay was drafted by the Mets in the first round of the 2016 draft from the University of Connecticut (also drafted him in 29th round of 2013 draft from Ward Melville HS). He missed the end of the 2016 season and all of the 2017 after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

The 23-year-old had his fastball velo up to 96 mph and showed off a high-spin curveball in an important season post-surgery.

The Mets acquired Franklyn Kilome from the Phillies last July in exchange for veteran infielder Asdrubal Cabrera. The imposing right-hander pitched to a 4.03 ERA with 1.08 WHIP, 9.9 K/9, and 4.20 SO/W in 38 innings for the Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies after joining the Mets organization.

Unfortunately, Kilome had TJS this offseason and will miss the entire 2018 season. The 23-year-old was in Baseball Prospectus’ Top 101 rankings for three straight years starting in 2016. We have Kilome ranked as the Mets No. 10 prospect.

The Mets signed veteran lefty Hector Santiago to a minor league deal last month. He had a 4.50 ERA, 1.59 WHIP, and alarming 1.4 HR/9 over 102 innings for the White Sox in 2018. He did strike out 9.1 K/9 but also walked a career-high 5.3 BB/9.

Santiago, 31, did fare better out of the bullpen for the White Sox with a 3.87 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, and 10.4 K/9. The former Angels starter made 49 appearances last season including seven starts.

Utility guy T.J. Rivera looked healthy in camp today as he fielded grounders at third and threw to first base. The Bronx native tried to play in 2018, but was shut down after only a handful of rehab games. He had TJS in September of 2017, and hasn’t played in a major league game since July of 2017.

Rivera now faces an uphill battle to playing time after the Mets added Jed Lowrie, Robinson Cano, and J.D. Davis to their infield this offseason. The 30-year-old Rivera is a career .304/.335/.445 hitter in 344 major league plate appearances.

All photos provided by Ed Delany of MMO.