Six Mets Crack ESPN’s Top 100 Prospects

Six Mets prospects cracked Kiley McDaniel’s Top-100 Prospects list on ESPN, which was released Wednesday morning. The six Mets who made the list tied the team with the Tigers, Padres, Reds, and Yankees for second-most top-100 prospects, just one behind the Orioles. The Mets who made the list were Jett Williams at 31, Drew Gilbert at 39, Luisangel Acuńa at 58, Ronny Mauricio at 72, Ryan Clifford at 80, and Christian Scott at 99.

Jett Williams was the highest-ranked Met on the list following his dominant 2023 campaign, which landed him in McDaniel’s 55 FV (future value) tier. Williams began the year in High-A St. Lucie, where he put up a respectable .832 OPS. Williams was promoted to High-A Brooklyn following a 79-game stint in St. Lucie and dominated for the Cyclones. Williams posted a 1.018 OPS with a .567 SLG in 36 games, highlighted by 18 extra-base hits in that time. The 20-year-old prospect ended his time in Double-A Binghamton, where he anchored a lineup that came just short of an Eastern League championship.

Shortly after Williams at 31 came Drew Gilbert at 39, also in the 55 FV tier. Gilbert came to the Mets before last July’s trading deadline as half of the return from the Astros for Justin Verlander. Gilbert spent the brunt of his campaign in Double-A Corpus Christi after tearing up High-A Ashville in the Astros organization, where he managed just a .713 OPS. However, once coming over to the Mets, Gilbert tore up Double-A with Binghamton, putting up a .984 OPS with six homers in just 35 games. Gilbert is slated to start the year in Triple-A with the Syracuse Mets and could become a factor in Queens quickly.

Luisangel Acuña was the first Met to appear in the 50 FV tier, coming in at the 58th spot on McDaniel’s list. Acuña, the younger brother of 2023 NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr., came to the Mets from the Rangers in exchange for Max Scherzer before the 2023 trading deadline. Acuña struggled in his short stint in Binghamton, managing just a .622 OPS. Overall, however, the uber-athletic infielder posted a .769 OPS with 57 stolen bases, splitting time between second base and shortstop with Binghamton.

Ronny Mauricio, despite a torn ACL that will cause him to miss all of the 2023 season, ranked 72nd. Mauricio made his Major League debut for the Mets in September of 2023 and produced mixed results. Mauricio smoked a ball as hard as 117.3 mph, but managed just a .643 OPS. Mauricio is set to miss all of 2024 with a torn ACL that he suffered in LIDOM play during the winter. The switch-hitting middle infielder will return for his age-24 season but will still be in need of a long-term position.

Ryan Clifford, who was the other half of the Mets’ return for Verlander, ranked 80th. Clifford primarily played first base for Brooklyn following the trade, despite being drafted initially as a corner outfielder. Clifford struggled with the bat in Brooklyn, posting a .683 OPS, despite tearing the cover off the ball prior to the trade to the Mets. Overall, however, the 20-year-old finished 2023 with a .854 OPS, slugging 24 total homers and 20 doubles.

Christian Scott, coming off a dominant 2023 campaign that threw him onto the top prospect scene, came in at 99th and was the final Met ranked. Scott dominated in Brooklyn to start his 2023 season, posting a 2.23 ERA in 23.2 innings over six starts. He followed up his Brooklyn stint with another strong run, this one in Binghamton, where he put up a 2.47 ERA and led the Binghamton staff to the Eastern League Championship Series.

Throughout the year, Scott displayed major league-level command, walking just 12 batters in 87 2/3 total innings, which attributed to an incredible 0.86 WHIP overall. Scott’s final ERA of 2.57, his K/9 of 11.0, and the aforementioned 0.86 WHIP earned him the 99th spot on McDaniel’s list and made him the only Mets starter ranked on this top-100 list.

You can find McDaniel’s entire list here, on ESPN.

Players must appear on a preseason Top 100 Prospects ranking by at least two of Baseball America, ESPN or MLB Pipeline for Prospect Promotion Incentive Eligibility. Williams, Gilbert, Acuña, Mauricio, and Clifford are all eligible, but Scott is not.