Early this week, I participated in Adam Rubin’s chat and I was lucky enough to get two questions in.

My second question was regarding last year’s top three picks from the June Amateur Draft.

Joe – Which of last years three First Round Draft Picks (Davis, Havens, Holt) will we see in the big leagues first? 

Adam – Definitely Holt. He’s not in big-league camp, but I bet we’ll see him borrowed for Grapefruit League games. Tony Bernazard and Sandy Johnson say he’s ahead of Mike Pelfrey at the same time. Holt could start the year as high as the Double-A rotation, though I think it’s wiser to hold him back with St. Lucie until the weather gets warmer in Binghamton.

I had a hunch Adam would say Holt simply because there has been so much buzz about him in the last few months. However, I never expected to hear such glowing remarks from Vice President of Player Development, Ton Bernazard.

It’s pretty exciting to hear that Holt is doing so well and that he is already ahead of where Mike Pelfrey was at the same point in their Met careers. We’ve heard so much about how electric his fastball can be in terms of velocity, movement, and his ability to deliver it with pinpoint control.

Here is a brief profile on Brad Holt.

Brad Holt RHP – Holt went 5-3 with a league-best 1.87 ERA and 96 strikeouts in 14 games with the Cyclones. In 72.1 innings, he allowed just 43 hits, 18 runs, 15 earned, and 33 walks. In addition to leading the NYPL in strikeouts, his strikeout total set a new franchise record for the Cyclones, eclipsing the previous mark of 93, set by Kevin Deaton in 2002. Holt finished the season with a 10.7 strikeouts per nine innings, and was named to the New York-Penn League All-Star Team in mid August. Holt struck out 10 batters in a game on four separate occasions, and tied a Cyclones franchise record with 14 strikeouts in a single game, in just six innings, on July 24th vs. Vermont.

On February 13th, Bart Hubbuch of the NY Post said that Brad Holt doesn’t have an invitation to the Mets’ major-league camp this spring, but get used to hearing the name. The 6-foot-4 prospect, a first-round pick last season out of UNC-Wilmington, put his mid-90-mph fastball on display in an impressive bullpen session here yesterday during voluntary workouts.

He also added that we might get to see Holt pitch once our players in the WBC leave this weekend.

I’m starting to sense that Brad Holt could be a part of the Mets rotation in 2010, and of course that depends on how he performs this season. There is a feeling in the organization that Holt can jump a level and begin the season in AA Binghamton. Holt is definitely on the fast track to the Major Leagues.