The Miami Marlins have announced that they have acquired former Mets prospect Cesar Puello from the Los Angeles Angels in exchange for cash considerations.

Puello, 28, played in the Mets organization from 2008-2016, but failed to reach the majors until 2017 with the Angels and Tampa Bay Rays.

However, the outfielder got a chance to play briefly with the Angels this season and made the most of it. In 12 games, Puello hit .390/.500/.683 with three home runs and 12 RBI to give himself a 0.7 bWAR and 215 OPS+ before getting DFA’d to make room for Justin Upton when he returned from the 60-day IL.

The Marlins sported an outfield of Harold Ramirez, JT Riddle, and Austin Dean on Tuesday night while also having Curtis Granderson on the roster, giving the team little reason to not give Puello a shot.

To make room for Puello, the Marlins DFA’d Rosell Herrera.

The post MLB News: Marlins Acquire Former Mets Prospect Cesar Puello from Angels appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Reno 3, Las Vegas (58-45) 0

The 51’s bats were extremely quiet collecting only five hits and going 0-9 with runners in scoring position stranding nine runners. Darrell Ceciliani went 2-4 while playing center field and batting second. Travis Taijeron went 1-2 with two walks and his 15th double of the season. Dilson Herrera and Johnny Monell each went 0-4 on the night.

Weird start for for Darin Gorski who went 6 innings giving up three runs on six walks and fives hits with four strikeouts. Cody Satterwhite pitched two perfect innings in relief with two strikeouts. Box Score

New Britain 4, Binghamton (55-46) 1

Travis d’Arnaud played 7 innings behind the plate going 1-3 and picked off another runner on the bases. Gavin Cecchini was 2-4, he now slashing an awesome .358/.433/.491 in the month of July. Brandon Nimmo went 0-3 with a walk while L.J. Mazzilli was 1-4 and knocked in the only B’Mets run.

Gabriel Ynoa had his 9th quality start in his last 10 games going 6 innings giving up three runs on eight hits and a walk while he struck out six batters. He fell to 7-7 on the season but has an impressive 1.14 WHIP and holding hitters to a .249 average. Beck Wheeler pitched a perfect 7th inning with one strikeout.

Josh Smoker pitched the final two innings and was impressive once again striking out four while hitting 96/97 MPH with his fastball. He did allow an earned run in the the 9th inning, he has given up just one earned in 9.1 innings in AA. Box score

St. Lucie (50-50) 2, Daytona 1 Walk-Off Win

Florida State League leading hitter Jeff McNeil ended the game with a single that scored Champ Stuart who reached on a single. Stuart and Colton Plaia each had three hits on the night while Dominic Smith was 1-4.

Robert Coles picked up the win pitching two scoreless innings in relief, he is now 3-2 with a 2.40 ERA for the season. Kevin McGowan made a nice start going 7 innings giving up one run on three hits and three walks with four strikeouts. Box Score

Savannah (53-47) 9, Greensboro 0

Michael Katz hit a three-run homerun in the 9th inning to give him a long ball in three straight games. Jonathan Johnson was 1-5 with his third homerun of the season. Eudor Garcia was 2-5 with his 17th double of the season, he extended his hitting streak to nine games. Garcia is hitting .386 over his last ten which has boosted his slash line to .286/.319/.452 for the year.

Wuilmer Becerra was 2-5 with two runs scored, now hitting .293/.344/.450 as a 20-year old in a tough ballpark to be successful offensively. Patrick Biondi was 2-4 with his first homerun of the season.

Martires Arias pitched 6 scoreless innings allowing three hits and a walk with six strikeouts, he should move to the St. Lucie rotation permanently with Meiser and Whalen gone. Alberto Baldonado pitched the final three innings without giving up a run with four strikeouts to pick up his 3rd save and lower ERA to 1.77. Box Score

Greeneville 4, Kingsport (16-16) 1 F/7 Game One

Dash Winningham was the only Met with multiple hits going 2-4, Luis Ortega, Gregory Valencia, and Ivan Wilson all had one hit each. Wilson didn’t strikeout for the third consecutive game after striking out 30 times in his first 18 games of the season.

Harol Gonzalez took his 2nd loss pitching 6 innings allowing four runs (three earned) without a walk and eight strikeouts. Box Score

Kingsport (17-16) 2, Greeneville 1

Dale Burdick drove in both Met runs including the game-winner in the last inning on a single that scored Luis Ortega. Winningham was 1-3 while Patrick Mazeika was 1-3 with his league leading 13th double of the season. Wilson went 1-2 with a sac bunt that setup the game winner, extended his strikeout free streak to four games.

Merandy Gonzalez had a solid start going 5.2 innings giving up one run on five hits and three walks while striking out six. Witt Haggard, 10th round, picked up his 2nd pro win striking out all four batters he faced. Box Score

GCL Mets (16-14) 8, GCL Nationals 1

Desmond Lindsay playing in his 2nd pro game went 2-4 with two RBI and a run scored while playing the whole game in center field. Matt Reynolds made his first rehab appearance going 1-2 with a walk and run scored while playing shortstop for 5 innings. Cesar Puello got into his first game action since Spring going 0-3 while playing the last five innings in right field.

Ali Sanchez was 1-4 with two runs scored and his 12th RBI of the season, now hitting .349/.398/.384 for the year. Sanchez also threw out his 16th runner trying to steal compared to 10 that have been successful. Milton Ramos was 1-2 with a walk and HBP while playing the whole game at 2B.

Gabriel Llanes pitched four innings giving up only an unearned run on fours hits, he walked no one and struck out one while lowering his ERA to 2.03 for the year. Jake Simon, 11th round, pitched two scoreless innings to pick up his 2nd pro win. He now has 7 scoreless innings to start his career. Box Score

Players Of The Week

The Mets farm system had three guys given player of the week awards with starter Matthew Bowman for Las Vegas, starter Seth Lugo for Binghamton, and outfielder John Mora for the Savannah Sand Gnats.

The post Mets Minors: Reynolds and Puello Play, TDA Closer To Returning appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Eric Campbell is a virtual lock to make team.

Dave in Spain asks…

”Also, what are the chances of Puello making it over Campbell? Or does he get optioned/sent down on the last day of ST, after most teams have set their rosters?”

Daniel McCarthy replies…

My understanding, as of this moment, is that outfield prospect Cesar Puello is out of options.  Therefore, if he does not break camp with the major league team, he will have to pass through waivers before being sent down to the minors- which ultimately I think will happen.

Puello is hitting .294 this spring with a .455 OBP, but it’s too small a sample size and lacking in power (.294 slugging from nothing but singles) to justify his presence over Kirk Nieuwenhuis and Matt den Dekker.  Both of those guys are in another stratosphere defensively than Puello and they’ve shown vast improvements at the plate that started last season, well before this spring.

Also, beyond the outfield logistics, Eric Campbell is a very valuable player and should be a lock for one of the bench spots.  His ability to make contact and play both corner infield positions will become increasingly valuable as the season wears on and fatigue sets in on the starters, particularly David Wright as the everyday third baseman and Michael Cuddyer as the platoon bat at first against southpaws.

Last year, Campbell had 145 at bats while playing third base, first base, DH or pinch hitting- all roles that speak to his background.  During those at-bats, he owned a .290/.344/.393 slashline and most importantly, he generated runs (13 runs scored and 11 runs batted in) and kept the bases moving when he didn’t find a pitch to hit (12 walks).

Sometimes in baseball, a guy can land on the wrong team at the wrong time, or just not have what it takes to earn a cup of coffee.  I’ll give Puello the benefit of the doubt and say that he’ll have to get his morning brew somewhere other than Queens.

The post Can Puello Squeeze Out Campbell For Bench Spot appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Left-handed pitching out of the bullpen, the Wilmer Flores bid to man the shortstop position, the return of Matt Harvey and when will there be room to accommodate Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz; these are the story lines out of Port St. Lucie this spring. I’d like to add the Cesar Puello dilemma to that mix.

In a Met minor league system dominated by pitching talent, Cesar Puello is a rare toolsy position guy, a soon to be 24-year old outfielder who has realized notable highs and lows on his ascent through the Mets system. The fact that Puello is out of options means that if he fails to make the Met roster out of camp, Puello would need to clear waivers to remain a Met. That makes the question ‘What do we do with Cesar Puello?’ a compelling one.

Admittedly, when it comes to Cesar Puello my viewpoint is distorted. In 2013, Puello was a terror on the baseball diamond in Binghamton, one of the reasons that baseball became so much fun in upstate New York’s Triple Cities. Puello was dynamic; an engaging baseball personality, a big kid with a cannon like outfield arm who hit with power and could run. Watching Puello in Binghamton was an event. From the moment he strode out of the dugout you could count on the big guy adding excitement to a night of baseball.

Vegas and Triple-A proved to be an obstacle for Puello. Many Met fans attributed Puello’s woes to his involvement and suspension in the Biogenesis scandal reasoning his breakout Binghamton performance had to be attributed to his use of performance enhancing drugs. I never bought that rationale.

To my way of thinking, Puello’s issues for the 51’s had more to do with how he was used than what he at one time used. On Wally Backman’s roster, Puello was part of a platoon split sharing time with other 51 outfielders. That was not the case in Binghamton, where Pedro Lopez penciled his star outfielder’s name on his lineup card nearly every day.

Met fans forget that after a very tepid start it was early June before Puello heated up in the Eastern League, but when he did, he more than rewarded Lopez for his confidence and patience.

That was not the case in Las Vegas. Here’s Paul DePodesta, the Mets Vice President of Player Development chatting with Chris McShane of SB Nation about Puello.

“One of the things last year for Cesar, not only had he missed time, but he goes to Triple-A and starts facing some real experienced pitchers – especially experienced right-handed pitchers. And, that caused him an adjustment period.”

“He still hit left-handers extremely well, and in the second half, he started hitting right handers better and better. So to Cesar’s credit, he was making a lot of adjustment through the course of the season and was productive again in the second half – as an offensive player.”

DePodesta went on to say that Puello’s defensive play in the outfield has always been a resume booster, something regular Binghamton baseball fans would attest to wholeheartedly.

DePodesta makes three points that make me believe the Mets will be making a real mistake if they don’t at least give this kid a brief major league preview before losing him on waivers.

First, DePodesta makes the point that Puello unlike his time spent as a regular in Binghamton, was part of a split platoon in Vegas. Even so, DePodesta acknowledges that after a shaky Triple-A start, Puello made adjustments and had his offensive game back on track during the second half of the year last year.

DePodesta’s point is consistent with my observations of Puello’s performance in Double-A. Early in his season in Binghamton, Puello lacked plate discipline and struggled hitting off-speed pitches from right-handed pitchers. Watching him play on a regular basis it was obvious he was working diligently to correct those issues and the young outfielder made substantial progress over time.

Finally, DePodesta speaks of the fact, that even when he struggled last summer, Puello hit left-handed pitchers extremely well. That’s a fact that should not be overlooked. Every major league team could use a right-handed power bat off the bench, a guy noted for solid outfield play including a cannon like throwing arm and a guy who can steal bases. Take a look at Puello’s recent stat line against left-handed pitching.

Year AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG OBP SLUG
AAA 109 24 34 8 2 4 17 10 27 .312 .409 .532
AA 76 19 32 6 1 8 25 7 18 .421 .483 .842
A (adv) 69 10 21 6 2 1 7 1 19 .304 .360 .493

The personnel decisions a major league franchise make are delicate matters. Decisions need to balance present needs with the long term health of the operation. I appreciate what a guy like Eric Campbell brings to the table for the Mets. His ability to play multiple spots on the baseball diamond, including the possibility of an emergency catching assignment provided pay value. Yet, in my opinion, Eric Campbell’s major league future is only in a utility role.

That may not be the case with Cesar Puello. In Puello the Mets have a diamond in the rough, a rare baseball commodity packaged as a combination of speed and power, the type of toolsy outfielder who just might someday become a major league baseball star.

Knowing Michael Cuddyer can play first base against left-handed pitching and with the Mets now working Ruben Tejada on the second base side of the infield, I’d prefer the Mets keep an eye on the future as we compete in the present. That means cutting Eric Campbell loose to give Cesar Puello a real major league audition before we lose him to another major league team. It a tough choice but a smart baseball move with little risk and big upside possibilities.

Thoughts From Joe D.

I was a little taken aback by some of the negative and vicious comments made against Puello a week ago by a few Mets fans. It’s sad to see how some have condemned, vilified, and basically kicked him to the curb at 23 because of the suspension.

I don’t see this same treatment for other Mets players who have been suspended, most recently Daniel Muno who is still very well received.

Let me remind you of a few things regarding Puello as it pertains to the Biogenesis suspension.

For one, he was tested every month during the 2013 season and never failed a drug test. In fact, he never failed a drug test in his life. Second, we have no idea what if any performance enhancing drug Puello took because that information was sealed. All we know was that it was an undisclosed banned substance. And finally, whatever the banned substance was, it was purchased in the Spring of 2012 and while Puello wanted to appeal, he didn’t for the good of the team.

“Out of respect for the Mets’ organization, my teammates, and my family, I have decided to accept this suspension and not exercise my rights under the Basic Agreement to appeal.”

I think in life we’ve all made mistakes when we were 19 and 20, I know I did. And that’s not to say Puello did anything wrong. The fact is nobody knows. All the minor leaguers had extreme pressure on them not to appeal. Or else.

So those of you who have been one of the select few who’ve been castigating the guy despite not having any facts, how would you like it if you were treated that way or perhaps your kid? The point is that Cesar Puello is one of our own. Part of our Mets family. Maybe he did something wrong, maybe he didn’t. But at 21 at the time, he at least deserves a second chance, even if you’re still unwilling to give him the benefit of the doubt.

The post The Cesar Puello Dilemma appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

All statistics are for the week ending Friday.

Cesar Puello finally got some playing this week and he did not disappoint, in fact he broke out. He went 11-25 with 4 home runs, 8 RBI and also had 3 stolen bases. Puello has all the tools to be successful, he just needs consistent playing time.

Wilmer Flores isn’t letting all the Tulo talk affect him and continued his strong winter going 8-26 with a HR and 4 RBI. His overall winter line is now at .309/.356/.456.

*** This just in: Flores is already off to a big follow-up week, hitting two homers on Saturday and another one tonight. In the two games he had five hits, five runs, and six RBI. Hat tip to John Dreker.

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Xorge Carrillo just will not stopping crushing the baseball, the supposedly defensive minded backstop went 7-16 with 3 doubles and 3 RBI. Boosting his winter league line to .283/.350/.522.

T.J. Rivera had another quiet week going 2-14 with only one RBI, however he is still hitting over .300 this winter.

Johnny Monell had a solid week going 4-11 with a double and 2 runs scored.

Jon Velasquez made two appearances, throwing 1.1 innings of scoreless ball and picking up a save.

The post Winter Ball Update: Puello Breaks Out, Flores Unstoppable appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

While former chief analyst Jason Parks now scouts future Cubs prospects for Theo Epstein & Co., Baseball Prospectus with their new minor league staff recently kicked off their off-season prospect coverage and is deep into the NL East. Today it was time for the Mets system with in-depth reports on what BP views as the “Top 10” in the system. As an add-on,  3 more prospects considered as “on the rise” but further away are mentioned just like 3 more “factors on the farm” that will likely have some sort of major league impact in 2015 but are ranked outside the Top 10. While BP does note that the Mets are seemingly being managed as a “small market” team in the large Metropolitan market of New York, they see a lot of promise & depth in the system plus among young major leaguers which are documented by a “Top 10 ages 25 and under” list near the end of the article.

“It’s a strong collection of both minor-league talent and young major leaguers that gives the Mets strong depth. The Mets may not have the best collection of prospects and young players in baseball, but you can make an argument for them having the most balanced farm system in the game.”

The Top Ten

1. Noah Syndergaard, RHP
2. Steven Matz, LHP
3. Brandon Nimmo, OF
4. Amed Rosario, SS
5. Kevin Plawecki, C
6. Dilson Herrera, 2B
7. Marcos Molina, RHP
8. Dominic Smith, 1B
9. Michael Conforto, OF
10. Jhoan Urena, 3B

In their extensive reports – only available to BP premium subscribers – on these 10, the BP staff notes strengths & weaknesses of the prospects, the current “upside” and a more conservative “realistic” outcome plus assesses the “risk factor” of reaching the ceilings while also grading out tools.   Syndergaard headlines the group as arguably the Top SP prospect in the upper minors heading into 2015 with raw stuff that matches that of Matt Harvey & Zack Wheeler and only some fine-tuning needed to reach his ceiling as a true frontline SP. Even in the more conservative “real case” scenario, he should become a quality # 2/3 SP in time which is quite a bullish outlook. As a positive,  the following 9 prospects all project as  1^st division regulars in terms of “upside” – with only Kevin Plawecki receiving a “high 5 solid average regular” upside but with a low risk profile. That already sets the Mets´ system apart from other systems that have been written on thus far.

It´s also apparent that BP is very much on board with the “upside” of lower level minor leaguers Amed Rosario, Marcos Molina, Dominic Smith, Michael Conforto and Jhoan Urena who are quite a bit away but do have several tools & factors working for them.

As for prospects on “the rise”, BP notes:

RHP Casey Meisner

OF Champ Stuart

RHP Gabriel Ynoa

These three are all candidates for the Top 10 list next year and received positive reports from the various BP staff members / scouts – Meisner mainly as a body projecting and growing in a positive direction, Stuart for his present-day tools and Ynoa for his pitchability profile.

As factors on the farm, BP expects 2015 contributions from:

RHP Rafael Montero

LHP Jack Leathersich

OF Cesar Puello

Montero just missed the top 10 but lacks true above average offerings to project as more than a back-end type SP for BP though he should be ready for that role right away. Leathersich could help in a setup role shortly while Puello´s loud tools are hampered by his poor approach and lingering Biogenesis doubts.

All in all, BP completes their outlook with their

Top 10 Talents 25 And Under (born 4/1/89 or later)

1. Zack Wheeler
2. Noah Syndergaard
3. Jenrry Mejia
4. Steven Matz
5. Jeurys Familia
6. Brandon Nimmo
7. Wilmer Flores
8. Amed Rosario
9. Kevin Plawecki
10. Dilson Herrera

Note that Matt Harvey, Jacob deGrom, Juan Lagares and Travis d’Arnaud all weren´t eligible and BP in general went with the major leaguer over the prospect when players were viewed on an equal level.

Overall, it appears the Mets may have one of the deepest if not the deepest collection of young talent in the majors and minors overall right now. Beyond the young pitchers, there may be no future stars in there. But even a lineup loaded of first division, average to above average regulars would be quite a feat after essentially being barren in that spot for over a decade beyond stars Wright and Reyes.  Now, if only ownership could provide the funds to help not only take this to a top level but also sustain it…

The post Baseball Prospectus Unveils Mets Top 10 Prospects appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Winter League Baseball started some time ago and I thought we’d check in on the several Mets scattered across each league:

Venezuelan League

Vicente Lupo – Has Not Played

Leon Canelon – 6 G, 2 AB, 2 R, .000/.000/.000

Jairo Perez – 20 G, .208/.269/.417, 3 2B, 4 HR

Wilfredo Tovar – 19 G, .295/.295/.372, 6 2B

Ryan Reid – 9 G, 4.82 ERA, 9.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 9 K

Albert Cordero – Has Not Played

Miguel Socolovich – 6 G, 1.50 ERA, 6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 10 K

Oswald Caraballo – .000/.000/.000, 5 G, 3 AB, 1R

Brandon Allen – .304/.448/.565, 19 G, 4 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR

Mexican League

Brian Burgamy – .236/.313/.361, 20 G, 4 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR

Cory Vaughn – .246/.359/.462, 20 G, 1 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR. 4 SB

Xorge Carrillo – .255/.338/.527, 17 G, 6 2B, 3 HR

Dominican Winter League

Hansel Robles – 7 G, 6.2 IP, 0.00 ERA, 2 H, 2 BB, 7 K

Gonzalez Germen – 3 G, 16.20 ERA, 1.2 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 1 BB

Cesar Puello – .154/.231/.241, 7 G, 13 AB, 2 H, 1 2B

Rafael Montero – 1 G, 6.75 ERA,  2.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 K

Rainy Lara – 4 G, 2.35 ERA, 7.2 IP, 9 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K

Darwin Frias – 3 G, 10.12 ERA, 2.2 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K

Puerto Rican Winter League

Jon Velasquez – 0.00 ERA, 2 G, 2 SV, 2.0 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 3 K

Arnaldo Berrios – Reserve

Carlos Alvarado – 1 G, 4.0 IP, 4 H, 1 K

Randy Fontanez – Reserve

Seth Lugo – Reserve

T.J. Rivera – 4 G, .167, 2 H, 12 AB

Joel Huertas – 54.00 ERA, 0.2 IP, 4 H, 4 ER

Each year, several players from the minors and majors play in the winter leagues for a few months in their home countries, and for their hometowns. The actual competition varies, because of varying levels of professional experience ranging from Rookie Ball to the Major Leagues.

To learn the history behind the Dominican, Mexican, and Venezuelan leagues, last year I wrote comprehensive articles in a series called “Lessons in Latin America“.

Mexican Baseball History

Venezuelan Baseball History

Dominican Republic Baseball History

The post Winter League Update: Robles and Lara Off To Solid Starts appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

One player who is really surprising me with his recent play is Kirk Nieuwenhuis. As I wrote last year on Mets Minors – Kirk was the forgotten man in the depth chart, a player whose star had fallen to the point where he didn’t even get a September call-up when the rosters expanded.

But here he is, back with the team since his exile in Las Vegas ended in June, and playing like the player we thought we had early in 2012. Since his recall, he’s appeared in 16 games, hitting .370 (10-for-27) with five doubles, one home run and five RBI. Yes, it’s a small sample size, but he doesn’t look lost like he did when he was with the major league team in 2013 and hit just .189 while striking out 32 times in 95 at-bats. He’s making a strong case for staying on the MLB roster as the fourth outfielder who won’t hurt you in the field and provides some left-handed punch off the bench.

He’s looking like a player who is realizing that his major league opportunity may pass him by if he doesn’t act now. He’ll be turning 27 next month and he’s at that age where the younger guys will pass right over him and he’ll be just another one of those career minor leaguers. In the last month, he’s making the most of that opportunity, and his stellar defensive play on Friday night to save a run with a throw to home plate was all hustle.

Despite being on the 40 man roster, Kirk wasn’t in the Mets plans last September. He didn’t make the opening day roster either as the Mets opted for Andrew Brown. It wasn’t until Juan Lagares went on the DL in mid-April that Kirk would get another big-league opportunity, but he was back in Vegas as soon as Lagares returned. When Eric Young, Jr. went on the DL in May, Kirk was bypassed in favor of Matt den Dekker.

However den Dekker batted just .156 in 49 plate appearances, and with Chris Young also struggling mightily, the Mets needed to get someone – anyone – that could help offensively. So on June 19th, den Dekker was demoted and a hot-hitting Nieuwenhuis got the call in what may be his very last opportunity to impress the Mets.

Here’s something impressive – the Mets are 9-0 when Nieuwenhuis is in the starting lineup.

A lot can happen between now and the end of the season, but for the time being, Kirk Nieuwenhuis is making a solid case to remain the fourth outfielder. One has to wonder – maybe he can become another key reserve outfielder like Danny Heep was, and man that fourth outfield spot for the Mets over the next several seasons. Time will tell.

The post Kirk Nieuwenhuis is Making the Most of His Latest Opportunity appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Record: 46-32

Top Performers / Top Prospects

• Noah Syndergaard, RHP: Syndergaard has not seen his typical success in Las Vegas by any means. The 21 year-old has struggled, posting a 4.98 ERA in 65 innings this season. He has fallen victim to the tough pitching conditions of Las Vegas, and currently has a 5.36 ERA at home, where conditions are the worst.He has seen his walk and strikeout rates worsen this season. It’s also important to consider that Syndergaard is six years younger than league average, but he has nonetheless still struggled. This was not the season Mets fans were looking for from Syndergaard.
• Rafael Montero: RHP: Montero has fared much better than Syndergaard, but his numbers have been clearly hurt by the PCL as well. He has a 3.75 ERA on the season in 50.1 innings. Those are just his Triple-A numbers of course. He also made a brief stop in New York, allowing 12 earned runs in 20 innings before being sent down. This is by no means the end of Montero, however. He will definitely be back again by season’s end.
• Cesar Puello, OF: Puello has probably had the most confusing season of any player in the Met system. 23 years old, Puello is hitting .229/.332/.324 in 63 games with just 12 total extra base-hits. However, he has received only on-and-off playing time this season. This is strange considering Puello’s incredible season with Binghamton last year. Sure, he was suspended for taking performance-enhancing drugs, but he is also one of the most intriguing outfield prospects in the entire system, not the kind of player you bench
• Allan Dykstra, 1B: Las Vegas is a strange mix of typical prospects and mid-to-late-20s on base machines. Dykstra certainly falls in the latter category. A former first-round pick of the Padres in 2008, Dykstra has taken a few years to come into his own and the Mets haven’t exactly rushed him up through the ranks. He is hitting .295/.436/.536 with ten homers, 18 doubles, and a triple in 67 games thus far. Part of his huge offensive numbers may be due to his age compared to the league and the hitter-friendly league and stadium, but Dykstra is nonetheless making a case for himself as a possible big league backup.
• Logan Verrett, RHP: The 24 year-old Verrett has had a solid year considering the pitching conditions, and is one of the few real pitching prospects currently on the Las Vegas roster. The former third-round selection has a 4.38 ERA in a team-high 90.1 innings pitched. Although his strikeout numbers are way down, his walk rate has dropped from 1.9 last season to 1.4 this year.

Notes

• Las Vegas leads the Pacific Coast League in runs, home runs, OPS, and walks. That’s not surprising considering the conditions the team plays in, however.
• The Las Vegas pitching staff has actually fared decently in the conditions, allowing the fourth-fewest home runs per nine innings in the league and striking out the third-most batters.

Outlook / Promotions

• Kevin Plawecki will soon be joining Las Vegas, which has already received Matt Reynolds from Binghamton. Within the next few months, including Syndergaard and Montero.

The post Mid-Season Review: Las Vegas 51s appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Who’s Hot

Kevin Plawecki

Plawecki has had sort of a streaky season but he’s in a hot streak right now that’s lifted has batting average on the season to a healthy .307. He’s 13 for 39 (.333) in his last 10 games with five extra base hits, including his first home run of the season. He’s also scored five runs and drove in five during this timespan. Plawecki has never been a catching prospect that’s expected to hit for much power so all of his future value will have to be carried by his hit tool and his defense. It’s encouraging to see Plawecki’s average at .307 on the season but he’s drawn just four walks in 88 AB’s this season (.333 OBP). It’s worth noting, however, that he hasn’t been striking out much either.

Jayce Boyd

After an extremely cold start to the season, Boyd is picking up the pace in a hurry with a .393 batting average, five RBI and seven runs scored in his last 10 games. He’s also clubbed three doubles and his first two home runs of the season during this hot streak as well. Boyd’s season numbers still look relatively ugly (.232/.333/.374) but it’s good to see that they’re finally on the upswing.

Greg Peavey

Peavey was good enough in his last two starts to earn MMN’s Pitcher of the Week honors as he recorded his first complete game shutout of his professional career his last time out. In nine innings pitched, he allowed just two hits without walking a batter and striking out six. In the start before that, Peavey went six innings, allowing just one earned run on six hits and two walks. He struck out four in the process. Peavey earned the win in each of his last two starts as his ERA sits at a very nice 3.16 on the season with 25 K’s against 7 BB’s in 31.1 innings pitched.

Who’s Not

Hansel Robles

Robles has struggled mightily in his last two starts, which have inflated his season numbers to the point where one would have no idea he had a very solid start to the season. On May 6th, he suffered his first loss of the season, tossing 5.1 innings and allowing five earned runs on seven hits. He walked one and struck out four. During his start on May 13th, Robles suffered his second consecutive loss and was beat up for seven earned runs in just 2.2 innings pitched. He allowed six hits, including three home runs, while striking out five and walking one. Robles’ ERA ballooned to 5.40 on the season after these last two starts.

Cesar Puello

Puello has showed some life in his past two games but, despite that, he has not hit at all this season. In his last 10 games he is batting a paltry .212 with one extra base hit. He has drawn three walks in his last six games, which is somewhat encouraging considering he had just two up to that point. His current line is .248/.309/.297, which is even more cringe worthy when you consider that he’s playing in a notorious hitting environment. Puello’s struggles this season are definitely concerning as his breakout season last year has been tied to the Biogenesis scandal. In order to prove the naysayers wrong, Puello will have to get on track as soon as humanly possible, especially if he wants to be considered for a call-up this summer.

Kirk Nieuwenhuis

Kirk has severely struggled since being sent down to AAA Las Vegas earlier this month. He has just four hits in his last 31 at-bats and had back to back four strikeout games as well, including 11 in those same 31 at-bats. It looks as if Kirk has not taken the demotion well and it’s hard to believe he’s anything more than a AAAA player at this point.

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