From Nolan McLean at Triple-A to Jose Chirinos, who recently got promoted from the Florida Complex League, and every level in between, there is pitching talent with tantalizing potential throughout the organization.

Nolan McLean. Photo Credit: Kylie Richelle

The Stable

The headliners are McLean and Jonah Tong, prospects with big-time helium who are taking off in 2025.

McLean started the year at Double-A, dominated, got promoted to Triple-A, and hasn’t missed a beat. He has an elite sweeper that has been big league ready from the moment he stepped onto a professional mound, a mid-90s heater, a sinker that has been missing bats like crazy, a cutter that has been inducing weak contact, and a changeup and curveball he mixes in occasionally.

Tong boasts the best fastball in the organization. Due to it’s elite IVB (induced vertical break), it was already the best fastball in the organization when he was throwing it in the low-to-mid 90s. Now, he’s routinely throwing it 95 and can get it up to 97. He has a big looping curveball and a slider that can both be plus pitches, but his new Vulcanchange has been a game changer, giving him an effective offspeed pitch that he had been searching for. He’s too good for Double-A, and should probably receive a promotion to Triple-A soon.

There’s also Brandon Sproat, who is probably more of a household name than Tong and McLean despite those two passing him in the prospect ranks. Sproat flew through the minors last year, making it all the way to Triple-A in what was his first season of professional baseball. However, he struggled mightily once he got there, and those struggles have continued in 2025. Sproat has a bunch of solid offerings, but no standout pitch like Tong and McLean. He’s still just 24, and is less than a year removed from dominating hitters at Double-A, so there’s plenty of time for him to right the ship. (He has a 2.25 ERA in his last 16 innings as of publishing.) He remains one of the top pitching prospects in the organization, the hype has just faded a bit.

Blade Tidwell is at Triple-A as well, and he’s been one of the most effective pitchers in the league. Don’t let the 4.02 ERA fool you—that’s pretty good for the International League. It’s also a full run lower since he was returned to Triple-A after making his big league debut a little over a month ago. He got hit around a bit by the Cardinals in that debut, but he has good stuff, and it’s very possible he makes another big league start at some point this season.

Meanwhile, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies have a stacked rotation just one level below. It’s headlined by Tong, but there are multipe probable future big leaguers on that staff as well.

Jack Wenninger. Photo by Kylie Richelle

Jack Wenninger has turned in the fourth-highest strikeout rate among  Double-A qualifiers, only behind Tong, top MLB pitching prospect Chase Burns and rising Cardinals prospect Tekoah Roby. Jonathan Pintaro, a former Division II pitcher who was signed out of indy ball last year, would be near the top of those leaderboards as well if he were qualified. He’s a great story, and while he is older at 27, he’s turned himself into a legitimate prospect in this system. Then there’s Zach Thornton, a southpaw, who rarely walks people while still posting a high strikeout rate. Over his last three starts, he’s given up just three hits and one run over 19 innings while striking out 22 and walking four.

High-A Brooklyn has maybe even more talent. 2024 second-round pick Jonathan Santucci actually has the worst ERA of the bunch at 4.32, but after a rough start he’s thrown 20 and 2/3 innings of one-run ball over his last four starts. Third-rounder Nate Dohm has turned in four good starts after his promotion from St. Lucie, and Noah Hall, Brendan Girton and R.J. Gordon all have ERAs under 3.30 in over 40 innings.

The Cyclones actually have too many pitchers for available starts. Gordon and Girton piggybacked each other earlier this week, with Gordon going the first three and 2/3 and Girton going the next four and 1/3. Two days later, Dohm and Hall did the same, throwing a respective five and four scoreless innings en route to a shutout victory.

It continues down to Single-A St. Lucie and the Florida Complex League. Irving Cota has a 1.85 ERA in 35 innings and even threw five scoreless innings in a spot start at Double-A before being sent back to St. Lucie. Will Watson had success, earning a promotion to Brooklyn in early June. Edgar Moreta and Wellington Aracena have both had strong seasons. Jose Chirinos was great in the FCL, and then threw four and 2/3 scoreless with seven strikeouts in his Single-A debut.

There are more. Joander Suarez had a lot of success at Double-A and is now getting his first taste of Triple-A action. Joel Díaz has had a solid season at High-A. Former top prospect Matt Allan is finally back on the mound, pitching for Brooklyn. These guys might be more like organizational depth pieces, but they have all flashed before.

There are also, of course, relievers. Some are former starters, like Douglas Orellana, Felipe De La Cruz, Saul Garcia, Cameron Foster and Dom Hamel. There are a few fireballers, like Ryan Lambert, Dylan Ross and Raimon Gómez, who are capable of touching triple digits. Then there are other relievers, like Ryan Ammons, Anthony Nunez and TJ Shook, who have consistently turned in good results.

The farm system is deeper than it ever has been before.

The Mets have had groups of highly-touted pitching prospects before. Generation K. The Big 5 of the mid-2010s. Maybe it’s a reminder that so often, prospects don’t pan out as expected. But the Mets have also never had the infrastructure to support these pitching prospects as they do right now.

The Big Picture

The Arizona Diamondbacks just provided the baseball world with an unfortunate reminder this past week with the news of Corbin Burnes needing to undergo Tommy John surgery becoming official—don’t sign starting pitchers to long-term contracts. Develop pitchers, that way you’re not forced to sign free agent starting pitchers to big-money, multi-year contracts.

The Mets have leaned heavily into that philosophy in the first two years under David Stearns. They pursued Yoshinobu Yamamoto, a unicorn in the free agent market at 25 years old, but other than that, they’ve stayed away from the big-name, high-priced free agent pitchers. No Burnes. No Max Fried. No Blake Snell. Fried has been great, but it’s an eight-year contract. That’s a long time to count on a pitcher to be healthy. Burnes and Snell are both already on the shelf.

Instead, the Mets opted for shorter deals. In 2024, it was Sean Manaea and Luis Severino. In 2025, it was Clay Holmes, Griffin Canning, Frankie Montas and re-upping Manaea. Montas and Manaea both opened the season on the injured list, but they are signed to two-year and three-year deals, respectively. There’s no true long-term commitment to either.

Is the Big Money Worth It?

Pitchers are inherently a high-risk free agent buy. Burnes signed a 6-year, $210 million deal with the Diamondbacks this offseason. He will miss the rest of 2025, and there’s a good chance he will miss all of 2026 as well. Arizona will pay him roughly $62 million for what could be 11 total starts from 2025 to 2026. The next time he pitches for the Diamondbacks will likely be when he is 32 years old. He already showed some early signs of decline this year before the injury. Who knows how he will look in 2027, especially coming off a major arm injury? Arizona will then be on the hook for four more years, with Burnes making over $30 million each year, and then owe him over $10 million a year for six more years in deferred money starting in 2031.

The Mets are better equipped than most to withstand injuries to players on big contracts, but no team wants that much dead money on the books. Even Steve Cohen wants to avoid paying people to not play as much as possible.

But how does a smaller market team justify that risk? That much dead money can be a backbreaker for a team that only signs a handful of players to big-money contracts — and “handful” might be too optimistic for a few organizations.

Since 2022, 11 pitchers (and Shohei Ohtani, who is yet to pitch for the Dodgers) have signed 9-digit free agent contracts: Max Scherzer, Robbie Ray, Kevin Gausman, Carlos Rodón, Edwin Díaz, Aaron Nola, deGrom, Yamamoto, Burnes, Fried and Snell. Eight of those 11 pitchers have made at least one trip to the 60-day IL. That includes the youngster Yamamoto, who made just 18 starts for the Dodgers in his rookie season.

Aaron Nola hasn’t, but after signing a seven-year, $172 million deal entering his age-31 season, he’s regressed so much just one year later that his contract is beginning to look like an albatross. He’s also currently on the 15-day IL and just had his return timeline pushed back. Fried hasn’t, and again, has looked fantastic, but he’s just two months into an eight-year deal. Gausman is the outlier, not taking a single trip to the injured list over the three years and change of his five-year deal, and has remained productive.

It’s an unfair line of thinking for pitchers, and it raises a lot of questions about a much larger issue. How does the league balance a need to compensate pitchers fairly for their work with the obligations of a front office to do what’s best for their organization?

Organizations getting what may be the best years of a pitcher’s career, while significantly underpaying them for six years for the value they are providing, and then tossing them aside when they finally have the opportunity to get paid is, to put it bluntly, a pretty crappy way to treat pitchers. However, organizations should always do what is in their best interests as they pursue the ultimate goal of winning a championship, and that includes wisely distributing their payroll. Smart organizations pay players for what they believe they will do over the course of their new contract, not what they have already done.

History shows it is not smart to sign free agent pitchers to long-term contracts, but underpaying pitchers for years only to cut them loose when it’s finally time for them to make money feels borderline predatory. Short-term contracts for pitchers will always exist, but even if they have high average annual values, they lack the security many players desire.

Is the solution players hitting free agency earlier, maybe after four years instead of six (or seven if their service time is manipulated)? That way, players hit free agency younger, they can cash in earlier, and maybe long-term deals for pitchers are more justifiable if that pitcher is 26 or 28 instead of 30 or 32.

Of course, that opens a much, much, MUCH larger can of worms, and would likely have a ripple effect on many other parts of the Collective Bargaining Agreement — too much to get into right now.

It’s such a difficult issue. Players deserve to be compensated fairly for the value they create, but ultimately, teams need to do everything possible to win, and anything less is malpractice. Unfortunately, that usually means staying away from giving long-term free agent deals to pitchers, signing pitchers to short-term deals when needed, and ideally, developing your own pitchers instead of buying them.

The Mets didn’t have a ton of MLB-ready, quality arms in the minor leagues in 2024 or to begin 2025. They turned to undervalued veterans with good tools like Manaea, Canning and the others, and focused on getting the most out of them. Soon, some of those big league starts will be taken by players the Mets have developed through the minor leagues themselves. McLean has the best combination of talent and proximity, but Sproat, Tidwell, Tong, Wenninger, Pintaro and Thornton are all at least at Double-A. Once you reach that level, the big leagues are within striking distance.

Not everyone will stick in the big leagues, but some will, and that’s an exciting thing for Mets fans to look forward to.

The post The Mets Have As Much Pitching Depth As They Ever Have appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Could that be left-handed pitching prospect Felipe De La Cruz?

Like Núñez, he has been in and out of our top 30 prospect rankings, and before the season, I had him in my just-missed group. I wrote about De La Cruz before the 2023 season as being an under-the-radar arm to watch after he made his stateside debut the previous season. The lefty struggled to limit runs in 2023 with St. Lucie (4.68 ERA) but excelled in a brief stint with Brooklyn (2.65 ERA), and overall, he struck out 131 batters in 107 1/3 innings over 24 appearances (22 starts).

In 2024, De La Cruz continued to walk a little too many hitters (9.6%), have an above-average ERA (4.25), and strike out hitters (24.6%) at an above-average rate when he pitched exclusively for High-A Brooklyn over 106 innings in 24 starts. After the regular season, De La Cruz went to pitch in the Dominican Winter League, where he struggled overall (6.48 ERA) but got his first taste of being exclusively a reliever.

Felipe De La Cruz was NASTY yesterday in his first start for the @SyracuseMets! ?

6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 9 K. He was up to 97 mph with his fastball, and threw strikes on 75% of his pitches! pic.twitter.com/uVwTKR06yl

— Mets Player Development (@MetsPlayerDev) May 3, 2025

De La Cruz, 23, started the 2025 season with Double-A Binghamton, pitching three to four innings per outing and rotating between starts and relief appearances. In those appearances, he had a 1.98 ERA and 20 strikeouts compared to only three walks. With his performance and the Mets’ constant need for pitching during a grueling stretch of games, De La Cruz was promoted to Triple-A Syracuse last week to make a start.

And what a start it was. In his Triple-A debut on May 2, De La Cruz pitched six scoreless innings of one-hit ball with nine strikeouts. He threw only 70 pitches, with 54 of them being strikes. On Wednesday, De La Cruz returned to the mound for Syracuse, but this time as a reliever. He pitched 1 2/3, allowing no runs on hits, a walk and two strikeouts. His fastball (a sinker) was up to 98 mph during the outing. Overall, this season, his 32.9 K-BB% ranks No. 10 among 498 minor league pitchers with at least 20 innings pitched.

Going back to the start in his Triple-A debut to look at what he threw, you can see why (besides the obvious need) the Mets might see him as a reliever. Of the 70 pitches he threw, 66 were either a fastball (29) or his gyro slider (37). He threw only four changeups to round out his repertoire. In his relief outing, he threw 19 pitches, all of which were the fastball or slider. As you can see, De La Cruz is mostly a fastball/slider pitcher. In his start, his fastball averaged 94.5 mph and maxed out at 97.3, while in his relief appearance, his fastball average was up to 95.7 and topped at 97.7 mph.

Felipe De La Cruz. Photo Credit: Matt Kipp/Binghamton Rumble Ponies

It’s a small sample size, but it looks like we could reasonably expect De La Cruz to get a little bump on his fastball in a shorter stint. An athletic lefty reliever with a 95-98 mph sinker and gyro slider at 84-88 mph could be successful in the major leagues if he attacks hitters. As you can see in the video above, De La Cruz pitches from a three-quarters arm slot and slings the ball a bit.

The Mets currently have Génesis Cabrera as their lefty in the bullpen and recently signed lefties Brooks Raley and Colin Poche. Cabrera has allowed one run in 2 1/3 innings with the Mets and has yet to strike out a batter. Although Poche has had recent big-league success, he posted an 11.42 ERA with the Washington Nationals this season. The 36-year-old Raley hasn’t pitched since April of last season, though he could be getting close to a rehab assignment as he’s almost 12 months removed from Tommy John surgery.

De La Cruz’s stuff has him looking like potentially one of the Mets’ better left-handed options to help the bullpen sooner rather than later.

Editor’s Note: Another reliever to keep on for making his MLB debut in 2025 is right-hander Douglas Orellana. The 23-year-old has excelled this year for Double-A Binghamton following his switch to the bullpen full-time. His 41.9 K% ranks second in the Eastern League, and his 0.57 WHIP ranks third among pitchers with at least 10 innings pitched. He’s pitching in high-leverage spots, picking up saves in two of his last four outings. 

The post Lefty Reliever Help on the Way for Mets? appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

A relatively overlooked lefty pitching prospect who had an ERA above 4.00 for High-A Brooklyn last year, De La Cruz shined by tossing six scoreless innings with just one hit allowed and nine strikeouts in his Syracuse Mets debut. De La Cruz is soon to be 24 years old and has been one of the most notable breakout pitchers in the Mets’ farm system this year.

Felipe De La Cruz. Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

Triple-A

The Syracuse Mets had a rough series against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders, dropping four of the six games in the series. The Mets lost the first three games of the series, two of which were shutouts, but they avoided total embarrassment by grabbing two of the last three games of the series. Syracuse is 15-18 this year.

While Felipe De La Cruz is receiving most of the attention in Syracuse, Drew Gilbert is also settling in nicely with his Triple-A squad after a really strong week against the RailRiders. Gilbert went 5-for-17 with a home run and a double, and he also drove in three runs while scoring five of his own. Gilbert struck out just three times in six games and walked five times. With a .987 OPS for the series, Gilbert now has an .823 OPS through 14 games with Triple-A this year.

Donovan Walton had a strong week at the plate as he was the only Met to hit multiple home runs in the series. (He had two.) He also led the team with seven hits and tied for the team lead with two doubles. Walton now owns a .752 OPS on the year.

Rico Garcia (four scoreless innings) and TJ Shook (three scoreless innings) stood out as quality bullpen arms this past week. Garcia didn’t allow a single hit and walked two with three strikeouts, while Shook allowed a hit and a walk with four strikeouts.

Drew Gilbert, Photo by Kylie Richelle of Syracuse Mets

Double-A

The Binghamton Rumble Ponies played six games including two doubleheaders against the Erie SeaWolves this past week. The series was very even, with both teams taking three games each including a split of both doubleheaders. The Rumble Ponies are 15-11 through 26 games.

The big news out of Binghamton is that Nolan McLean has been promoted to the Syracuse Mets. His last start with the Rumble Ponies was a fantastic one, as McLean tossed six scoreless innings with four strikeouts. That brought his ERA on the year down to 1.37 through five starts.

Jett Williams has been hot at the plate, and he continued his strong performance against Erie. In five games, Williams went 5-for-16 with three doubles and a stolen base. He also struck out just once and walked twice. After recording a .529 OPS in 22 games with Binghamton last year, Williams owns an .873 OPS in 21 games with Binghamton to start 2025.

William Lugo is hitting .324 on the year for the Rumble Ponies, and that average received a bum due to an 8-for-20 week against Erie. Lugo hit a home run and three doubles, though he did strikeout seven times with no walks. His deficiency in walks this year makes his .755 OPS seem disappointing compared to his stellar batting average, though the Mets will take the hits after he batted just .186 in Brooklyn last year.

Nick Lorusso also looked strong at the plate against Erie, going 6-for-16 with a home run, a double, and two walks. Lorusso owns an .823 OPS through 22 games this year.

Jonah Tong continued doing what he does best in his lone start against Erie: striking people out. Tong allowed a run in four innings, striking out eight in the process. He now owns a 3.38 ERA in five starts this year, with 38 strikeouts in 21 1/3 innings. Tong could be joining McLean in Syracuse later this summer.

Jonah Tong. Photo Credit: Matt Kipp

High-A

The Brooklyn Cyclones won their series against the Wilmington Blue Rocks, taking four out of the six games. The Cyclones excelled offensively, scoring 44 runs in the series (7.33 runs per game), though they also received some great pitching performances. Brooklyn is now 17-9.

Two Cyclones (Zach Thornton, who is now with Binghamton, and Jacob Reimer) earned awards for the month of April, with Thornton being named South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Month and Reimer being named South Atlantic League Player of the Month.

While Thornton has already been promoted and Reimer hasn’t, the third baseman might not be far behind as he has continued his success into May. In the series against Wilmington, Reimer went 10-for-25 with three home runs, two doubles, and seven RBIs. He owns a 1.027 OPS through 25 games this year.

Carson Benge and Ronald Hernandez also had scorching performances at the plate during the series. Benge went 8-for-22 with a triple, two doubles, and six runs scored while Hernandez went 8-for-18 with two home runs, five RBIs, and four runs scored. Benge continued to heat up, improving his OPS on the year to .787 while Hernandez now owns a .750 OPS.

Paul Blackburn made his first rehab start of the year as he looks to work his way back to the Mets for his 2025 debut. Blackburn allowed two runs in three innings but struck out six in the effort.

Noah Hall made two of the starts in this series and looked great, allowing just three runs in 10 innings with 13 strikeouts. Hall has been phenomenal through six starts, owning a 1.88 ERA.

Joel Díaz finally allowed his first run of the season in his fifth appearance, allowing just the one run in five innings. Díaz will now have to settle with owning an 0.44 ERA instead of the 0.00 ERA he held entering this past week.

Low-A

The St. Lucie Mets split their series with the Jupiter Hammerheads, though they now sit in first place in their division due to a five-loss skid from the Palm Beach Cardinals, who had been in first place. St. Lucie owns a 15-12 record through 17 games this year.

While he has since been promoted to Brooklyn, A.J. Ewing was recognized as being the best batter in the Florida State League for the month of April after he dazzled with a 1.121 OPS.

Yonatan Henriquez was the standout hitter for the Mets against the Hammerheads, even though he went just 3-for-14. He had two home runs and walked four times, giving him an OPS over 1.000 for the series. The struggling Henriquez now owns a .606 OPS for the year.

Simon Juan had a positive week after being in a massive slump to start the year. The 19-year-old who broke out in rookie ball a year ago went 8-for-22 with a home run and four runs scored. He still owns just a .521 OPS.

The stars of the week, however, were two starting pitchers in Nate Dohm and Edgar Moreta. Dohm struck out six over 5 1/3 scoreless innings, while Moreta struck out five over five scoreless innings. Dohm has been impressive this year with a 2.22 ERA in six starts, while Moreta has also looked good with a 3.57 ERA in five appearances including three starts.

Irving Cota, meanwhile, shined out of the bullpen with 4 2/3 scoreless innings across two appearances. Cota has been phenomenal this year, owning a 0.50 ERA through six appearances an 18 innings.

Florida Complex League

The FCL Mets’ season is officially underway, though they have played just one game to this point and are 0-1 with a 9-2 loss to the FCL Cardinals. Julio Zayas and Jake Zitella drove in the two runs for the Mets while Jose Guevara started and struggled.

Organizational Leaders

Batting

AVG – A.J. Ewing (STL/BRK) – .365

OPS – Jacob Reimer (BRK) – 1.027

HR – Jon Singleton (SYR) – 7

SB – A.J. Ewing (STL/BRK) – 16

Pitching

ERA – Joel Díaz (BRK) – 0.44

SO – Jonah Tong (BNG) – 38

WHIP – Joel Díaz (BRK) – 0.68

Players of the Week

Offense – Jacob Reimer, 3B/1B Brooklyn

Reimer appears close to being promoted to Binghamton as he continues to mash in High-A. The April Player of the Month hasn’t lost a step in May and carries an OPS above 1.000 into Tuesday’s action. The 21-year-old appears ready for the next step, whenever he may be called upon.

Pitching – Felipe De La Cruz, P Syracuse

Earning Pitcher of the Week honors for his first ever start in Syracuse, part of a league known to favor offense, is no small feat for Felipe De La Cruz. The lefty looked excellent and appears poised for a breakthrough season. After recording a 4.25 ERA in Brooklyn last year and a 5.40 ERA in the Dominican Winter League this past winter, De La Cruz now has a 1.37 ERA in five appearances between Binghamton and Syracuse, including his latest start for Triple-A which was nothing short of a gem.

Upcoming Schedule – May 6-11

• Triple-A Syracuse: @ Jacksonville
• Double-A Binghamton: vs. Erie
• High-A Brooklyn: @ Asheville
• Low-A St. Lucie: vs. Clearwater

The post Minors Weekly Report: Felipe De La Cruz Shines in Triple-A Debut appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Felipe De La Cruz is the International League Pitcher of the Week (AAA) after going six innings of scoreless ball while striking out nine. The 23-year-old southpaw debuted with Syracuse after earning a promotion from Binghamton. In four games with the Rumble Ponies, De La Cruz went 0-1 but posted a brilliant 1.98 ERA through 13 ⅔ innings. He struck out 20 batters and only walked three.

Zach Thornton is the South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Month (High-A), posting an insane 0.44 ERA in four starts. A southpaw, he held batters to a .162 average and pitched to a 0.83 WHIP. In 20 ⅔ innings, he struck out 20 hitters and walked two. Thornton earned a promotion to Binghamton for his April performance in Brooklyn.

It was a clean sweep for the Cyclones, as Jacob Reimer took home the honor of South Atlantic League Player of the Month (High-A). The third baseman is hitting .327/393/.634/1.027 through 25 games with five home runs, three triples, ten doubles and 23 RBIs. He leads the Cyclones in almost every offensive category except for on-base percentage, where he’s second. Reimer is the Mets’ 20th-ranked prospect, according to MLB Pipeline.

To round things out, A.J. Ewing, the Mets’ No. 27 prospect (MLB Pipeline), was named FSL Player of the Week (Low-A) and promoted to Brooklyn. Ewing has been one of the Mets’ best-hitting prospects to start 2025. The utility infielder hit .400/.506/.615/1.121 with four triples, three doubles, fourteen stolen bases and 20 RBIs in just 14 games before his promotion.

The post Mets Prospects Rack Up Accolades appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Paul Blackburn gave up two runs on four hits and struck out six over three innings in his second appearance for Single-A Brooklyn.

The hitting star of the night was Jett Williams, who went 3-for-7 with two doubles as Binghamton split a doubleheader.

Met affiliates went 3-2 Friday. The Florida Complex League Mets begin their Rookie League season Saturday at 10 a.m. ET with a game against the FCL Cardinals in St. Lucie.

Nolan McLean. Photo Credit: Rick Nelson

Triple-A

Scranton Wilkes/Barre RailRiders (15-15) 3, Syracuse Mets (14-17) 6

Box Score

• CF Drew Gilbert, 1-for-3, 2B, R, 2 RBI (5), (.730 OPS)
• 3B Jared Young, 1-for-4, RBI (9) (1.045 OPS)
• C Hayden Senger, 1-for-2, R (.462 OPS)

Gilbert doubled in a run to open the scoring and Young doubled home a run as well. Jon Singleton (.987 OPS) singled in a run to highlight a three-run seventh inning that broke a 3-3 tie.

• LHP Felipe De La Cruz, (0.00 ERA) 6 IP, 9 K, H

De La Cruz was sensational with nine strikeouts in his first start for Syracuse. He didn’t walk a batter, gave up just one hit and threw 53 of his 70 pitches for strikes. The 23-year-old from the Dominican Republic was promoted after pitching to a 1.98 ERA and 1.02 WHIP over 13 2/3 innings at Binghamton, where he struck out 20 and walked three.

Double-A

Binghamton Rumble Ponies (14-9) 4, Erie SeaWolves (15-9) 1

Box Score Game 1

• SS Jett Williams, 1-for-4, 2B, R, RBI (9), (.857 OPS)
• CF Nick Morabito, 1-for-4, 3 K, CS (3) (.696 OPS)
• 1B Nick Lorusso, 2-for-2, R, RBI (12), BB (.857 OPS)
• LF Alex Ramírez, 2-for-3, R (.578 OPS)

Williams doubled off the wall in left to bring in a run. Morabito was caught stealing, the 21-year-old is now 7-for-10 swiping bases on the season after going 59-for-74 a year ago.

• RHP Nolan McLean (1.37 ERA) 6 IP, 5 H, 2 BB, 4 K, W

This was the third time in five starts that McLean didn’t allow a run. The 2023 third-round draft pick has struck out 30 and walked 12 in 26 1/3 innings.

Binghamton Rumble Ponies (14-10) 0, Erie SeaWolves (16-9) 3

Box Score Game 2

• DH Jett Williams, 2-for-3, 2B (.887 OPS)
• 3B Nick Lorusso, 1-for-3 (.849 OPS)
• DH Ryan Clifford, 0-for-3, K (.667 OPS)

Williams had two of the Rumble Ponies’ three hits, including his seventh double. He is hitting .303 and has hit safely in 12 of his last 13 games. He also stole his sixth base.

• RHP Jonathan Pintaro (3.15 ERA) 4 2/3 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 6 K

Pintaro has struck out 28 in 20 innings and has not allowed more than two earned runs in any of his five starts, though his longest start was 5 2/3 innings.

High-A

Wilmington Blue Rocks (8-17) 2, Brooklyn Cyclones (16-8) 3

Box Score

• CF A.J. Ewing, 3-for-4, R, 2 RBI (3) (.721 OPS)
• LF Eli Serrano, 2-for-4 (.828 OPS)
• 1B Jacob Reimer, 2-for-3, R (1.022 OPS)
• RF Carson Benge, 0-for-4, K (.803 OPS)

Brooklyn scored all three of its runs in the second inning, with Ewing driving in two with a single. Reimer, who hit three home runs in Wednesday’s game, extended his hitting streak to seven games.

• RHP Paul Blackburn (5.40 ERA) 3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 6 K, HR
• RHP R.J. Gordon (2.14 ERA) 4 1/3 IP, 2 H, 3 BB, 4 K

Blackburn was sharp for two innings, but ran into trouble in the third when he gave up a couple of runs, including a solo home run. Gordon has struck out 24 in 21 innings.

Low-A

St. Lucie Mets (14-11) 0, Jupiter Hammerheads (12-13) 4

Box Score

• SS Colin Houck, 1-for-3, 2B, 2 BB, K (.689 OPS)
• 1B Vincent Perozo, 1-for-3, K (.808 OPS)
• 2B Jeremy Rodriguez, 0-for-3, 2 BB (.663 OPS)

A rough night for St. Lucie, which was held to two hits, a Houck double and a Perozo single. The Mets struck out nine times.

• RHP Will Watson (2.89 ERA) 2 IP, 3 ER, 3 H, 4 BB, 2 K
• RHP Wellington Aracena (4.73 ERA) 3 IP, ER, 2 H, 4 BB, 2 K

After striking out 20 and walking three in his first four appearances (16 2/3 innings), Watson struck out two and walked four in two innings on Friday.

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Triple-A

Durham Bulls (58-64) 11, Syracuse Mets (66-54) 6

BOX SCORE

• CF Drew Gilbert: 2-for-5, R, HR (2), RBI (6), K (.619 OPS)
• 2B Brett Baty: 2-for-4, 2B, RBI (43), BB (.893 OPS)
• DH DJ Stewart: 2-for-3, 2 R, 2B, SB, BB, K (1.016 OPS)
• C Austin Allen: 1-for-1, R, HR (7), 2 RBIs (20) (.851 OPS)
• SS Luisangel Acuña: 1-for-5, R, K (.673 OPS)
• RF Jackie Bradley Jr.: 1-for-4, R, RBI (7), SB, K (.710 OPS)

The bulk of Syracuse’s offense came in the bottom of the third when they put up three runs due in part to RBI singles by Acuña and Baty. Baty has a four-game hit streak and has driven in a run in three of his last four games. Later in the game, Gilbert hit a solo home run in the fifth for his second home run of the year.

• RHP Brandon Sproat (9.24 ERA): 5 IP, 6 R, 9 H (49 of 70 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Grant Hartwig (3.42): 1 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, BB, 2 K (15 of 24 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Max Kranick (3.42): 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, K (8 of 10 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Vinny Nittoli (0-2, 8.44): 2/3 IP, 5 R (4 ER), 4 H, BB, K (16 of 27 pitches for strikes)

Sproat had his longest outing since joining Triple-A Syracuse on August 5. However, the 23-year-old right-hander did not record a single strikeout, and he tied his season-high by allowing three home runs (one each from the 3rd-5th inning).

Double-A

Binghamton Rumble Ponies (59-54) 3, Reading Fighting’ Phils (51-64) 2 

BOX SCORE

• RF Matt Rudick: 3-for-3, 2B, RBI (35), 2 BB, SB (.716 OPS)
• DH Rowdey Jordan: 2-for-4, R, SB (.655 OPS)
• LF Jaylen Palmer: 1-for-4, R, 2B, RBI (21), K (.722 OPS)
• C Kevin Parada: 1-for-4, K (.659 OPS)
• 1B Ryan Clifford: 0-for-3, BB, 2 K (.801 OPS)

The Rumble Ponies picked up a win on Wednesday in walk-off fashion. With Jordan on second base and one out, Palmer delivered an RBI double to tie the game (extended hit streak to five games). Two batters later, Rudick recorded the game-winning hit on a single. Rudick has had a hit in four straight games and had his fifth game of three or more hits this year.

• RHP Jordan Geber (3.46): 6 IP, 2 R, 5 H, BB, 3 K (50 of 79 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Cameron Foster (3.52): 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, BB, 3 K (22 of 30 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Cam Robinson (3-1, 3.94): 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, K (11 of 14 pitches for strikes)

Geber picked up a quality start on Wednesday and did not allow a single extra-base hit against the Reading lineup. The lone runs that came in to score against him was on a pair of double plays in the second and sixth inning. The 25-year-old right-hander had his longest outing of the year and has allowed two or fewer runs in five of his last seven starts.

High-A

Jersey Shore BlueClaws (64-52) 7, Brooklyn Cyclones (56-60) 0 

BOX SCORE

• DH D’Andre Smith: 1-for-4, 2B, 2 K (.660 OPS)
• 3B Junior Tilien: 1-for-4 (.628 OPS)
• CF Nick Morabito: 0-for-3, BB (.708 OPS)

On Wednesday, the Cyclones’ offense recorded only two hits and struck out ten times. The lone hits came on a Tilien single in the bottom of the fifth and a Smith double in the eighth.

• LHP Felipe De La Cruz (3-8, 4.55): 5 IP, 4 R, 6 H, 3 BB, 3 K (51 of 82 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Luis Moreno (5.40): 3 IP, 3 R (2 ER), 5 H, 3 BB, 2 K (37 of 61 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Alfred Vega (9.00): 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H (8 of 11 pitches for strikes)

The Jersey Shore offense scored a run against De La Cruz in each of the first three innings and in four of the five innings that he pitched. De La Cruz was able to go five or more innings for the second time in four August outings.

Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

Low-A

Palm Beach Cardinals (71-43) 9, St. Lucie Mets (39-75) 4

BOX SCORE

• SS Jett Williams: 1-for-3, SB, K (.666 OPS)
• DH Boston Baro: 2-for-4, R, HR (4), 2 RBIs (41) (.771 OPS)
• CF A.J. Ewing: 2-for-4, R, 2B, HR (4), 2 RBIs (26), BB (.655 OPS)
• 3B Colin Houck: 2-for-5, 2 K (.616 OPS)
• RF Eli Serrano III: 1-for-5, R, 2B (.615 OPS)

It was an interesting day for the St. Lucie offense. The Mets did have 13 hits, but they were 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Facing an early 3-0 deficit, Baro got the team on the board with a leadoff home run. He would later tie the game at three in the second with a sacrifice fly. Ewing would hit a solo home run in the eighth. The 20-year-old has multiple hits in three of the last four games.

The big-picture highlight of this game for the Mets is Williams’ return. Williams got back in the lineup for the first time since April 21 and had a single and stolen base in his first at-bat.

• RHP Edgar Moreta (0-4, 6.00): 6 IP, 4 R, 6 H, 2 BB, 7 K (54 of 86 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Wilson Lopez (6.16): 1 2/3 IP, 5 R (3 ER), 6 H, BB, K (30 of 47 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Estarlin Escalante (4.50): 1 1/3 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, K (10 of 15 pitches for strikes)

After a rough first inning that saw Moreta allow three runs, he settled into a groove. The 20-year-old right-hander completed six innings for the first time this year and he had a season-high seven strikeouts. Moreta has 18 strikeouts in 15 1/3 innings in three outings this month.

The post Mets Minors Recap: Jett Williams Returns to Action appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Triple-A

Rochester Red Wings (62-52) 11, Syracuse Mets (64-50) 2

BOX SCORE

• 2B Brett Baty: 1-for-3, 2 R, HR (14), RBI (39), 2 BB (.857 OPS)
• OF Jackie Bradley Jr.: 3-for-4, 2B, RBI (4), SB (.740 OPS)
• 3B Luke Ritter: 1-for-5, 2B, 2 K (.901 OPS)
• SS Luisangel Acuña: 0-for-5, K (.682 OPS)

It was a great day at the ballpark for Bradley Jr. on Wednesday. He had the RBI single in the top of the first that got the Mets on the board and picked up a three-hit day. Baty added on the second run with a mammoth, 440-foot solo home run in the seventh. He has homered three times in the last four games and has driven in five runs over that span.

440 feet.
115 miles per hour off the bat.
Brett. Baty. Nuclear. Missile. pic.twitter.com/uU5KCMwqH6

— Syracuse Mets (@SyracuseMets) August 14, 2024

It was not great news for the rest of the Syracuse lineup. As a team, they went 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position. In addition, Drew Gilbert, who just got back into the Syracuse lineup, ended up leaving the game in the first inning after getting hit by a pitch in a difficult area.

• RHP Brandon Sproat (8.22 ERA): 3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 2 K (30 of 49 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Justin Jarvis (6.59): 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, BB, 2 K (19 of 26 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Shintaro Fujinami (1-1, 9.37): 1 IP, 2 R, 2 H, BB (15 of 24 pitches for strikes)
• LHP Matt Gage (4.00): 2/3 IP, 4 R, 4 H, BB, K (14 of 23 pitches for strikes)

Wednesday’s outing for Sproat ended up being a short one. He ended up getting ejected after the inning. While he only got two strikeouts, he got four groundball outs. The Syracuse pitching staff allowed 10 of their 11 runs between the 6th and 8th innings.

Double-A

Portland Sea Dogs (64-45) 6, Binghamton Rumble Ponies (56-51) 4 (11 Innings)

BOX SCORE

• CF Matt Rudick: 1-for-4, BB, SB (.700 OPS)
• SS Wyatt Young: 2-for-4, R, 3 RBIs (27) (.720 OPS)
• LF Stanley Consuegra: 1-for-5, R, K (.635 OPS)
• 2B Rowdey Jordan: 0-for-3, R, 2 BB, 2 K, SB (.657 OPS)

The Rumble Ponies only had five hits in their 11-inning loss on Wednesday. The two teams played to a scoreless tie until the bottom of the seventh when Young recorded a two-run single. The 24-year-old also had an RBI single in the 10th to reach a new season-high for RBIs in a game. Binghamton would tie the game at four on a Jeremiah Jackson RBI groundout (48th RBI of the year). As a team, the Rumble Ponies were 2-for-15 with runners in scoring position.

Nolan McLean, Photo by Bronson Harris of the Binghamton Rumble Ponies

• RHP Nolan McLean (4.79): 5 1/3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 3 K (53 of 81 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Carlos Guzman (4.71): 2 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, BB, 4 K (28 of 39 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Cam Robinson (4.06): 2 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 5 H, BB, 2 K (31 of 45 pitche for strikes)
• LHP Daniel Juarez (2-3, 5.04): 1 R, 2 R (1 ER), H, K (15 of 19 pitches for strikes)

Despite getting a no-decision, McLean had one of his longest outings of the season. He pitched into the sixth inning for the second time this year and has allowed two or fewer runs in four of his last six outings. Guzman recorded four strikeouts when he came in after McLean, which was one off his season-high.

High-A

Wilmington Blue Rocks (51-58) 6, Brooklyn Cyclones (52-58) 4

BOX SCORE

• CF Nick Morabito: 1-for-4, 2B, RBI (17) (.715 OPS)
• LF Christopher Suero: 2-for-4, 2 RBIs (36), K (.651 OPS)
• 2B D’Andre Smith: 2-for-4, K, SB (.592 OPS)
• RF Omar De Los Santos: 0-for-3, R, RBI (24), BB, K (.567 OPS)

The Cyclones scored all four of those runs in the top of the fifth. The first run came across due to Wilmington walking four consecutive batters. Following a Morabito RBI groundout that cut the deficit to 3-2, Suero gave them the lead with a two-run single. Smith had a multi-hit game to extend his hit streak to six games.

Nick Morabito, Photo by Ed Delany of Mets Minors

• LHP Felipe De La Cruz (3-7, 4.40): 4 2/3 IP, 5 R (3 ER), 6 H, 2 BB, 5 K (58 of 87 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Jake Stevenson (6.57): 1 1/3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, BB, 2 K (19 of 32 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Alan Perdomo (0.00): 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, BB (16 of 29 pitches for strikes)

All three runs that were scored against De La Cruz came in the first four batters (three singles and a triple). From that point on, he was able to retire 9 of the next 11 hitters he faced. Perdomo threw two scoreless innings and extended his consecutive scoreless outing streak to six (dating back to his time in St. Lucie).

Low-A

St. Lucie Mets (37-71) 5, Daytona Tortugas (53-54) 1

BOX SCORE

• 1B Ronald Hernandez: 2-for-4, 2B, RBI (36), SB, K (.738 OPS)
• 3B Yonatan Henríquez: 1-for-4, 2 RBIs (5), BB, K (.564 OPS)
• SS Colin Houck: 1-for-2, 2 R, 2B, SB, BB, HBP (.624 OPS)
• CF A.J. Ewing: 1-for-1, R, RBI (21), 3 BB, SB (.621 OPS)
• 2B Boston Baro: 0-for-4, R, BB, 3 K (.766 OPS)

St. Lucie managed to have only five hits in Wednesday’s game, but that would be all they needed to record the win. They scored four of their five runs in the top of the second, which included a two-run single by Henríquez and an RBI double by Hernandez. Hernandez has had two multi-hit performances in the last three games. Ewing ended up all over the bases. He had an RBI single in the sixth, had three walks, and even stole a base.

Colin Houck, Photo by Ed Delany of Mets Minors

• RHP Jorge De Leon (7.71): 3 IP, 0 R, 2 H, BB, 2 K (27 of 39 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Irving Cota (1-0, 2.57): 3 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 2 K (28 of 40 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Wilson Lopez (3.24): 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H (7 of 11 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Joseph Yabbour (6.75): 2 IP, 0 R, 2 H, BB, 5 K (20 of 33 pitches for strikes)

The four St. Lucie pitchers combined for nine strikeouts in Wednesday’s win. Daytona was 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position and scored their only run via a solo home run in the bottom of the fifth. Yabbour finished the night with five strikeouts, which was one off the 21-year-old’s season-high of six back on June 4 in the FCL. De Leon got the start and tied his season-high of three innings pitched.

The post Mets Minors: Nolan McLean Shuts Down Sea Dogs appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Triple-A

Lehigh Valley IronPigs (28-35) 5, Syracuse Mets (39-25) 3

BOX SCORE

• SS Luisangel Acuña: 2-for-4, R (.648 OPS)
• RF Rylan Bannon: 1-for-4, R, HR (11), 3 RBIs (43), 2 K (.892 OPS)
• 3B Brett Baty: 2-for-4 (1.316 OPS)
• 2B Luke Ritter: 1-for-3, BB (.870 OPS)

The lone runs for Syracuse on Wednesday came in the bottom of the third when Bannon hit a three-run home run that gave the Mets the early lead. The 28-year-old has homered twice and driven in eight runs over the last four games.

Don’t worry, Rylan Bannon is wide awake! pic.twitter.com/FRIcUrY42E

— Syracuse Mets (@SyracuseMets) June 12, 2024

As for the rest of the offense, they did not have another extra-base hit, and they were 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position. Baty had two more hits and he has a hit in each of the last four games he has played at the Triple-A level. Acuña ended up having his third multi-hit performance in the last four games.

• RHP Christian Scott (2.91 ERA): 3.2 IP, 1 ER, 5 H, BB, 6 K (46 of 60 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Mike Vasil (2-4, 7.08): 3.2 IP, 4 R (1 ER), 4 H, 3 BB, 3 K (43 of 75 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Grant Hartwig (2.31): 1.1 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, BB, K (15 of 26 pitches for strikes)

While Mets fans wait for Christian Scott to get called back up, the right-hander keeps finding ways to excel in the minors, albeit while his workload is being managed. While the right-hander allowed a solo home run in the top of the fourth, he was efficient with his pitches and got four swinging strikeouts.

Double-A

Somerset Patriots (29-30) 10, Binghamton Rumble Ponies (29-28) 5

BOX SCORE

• 3B Jaylen Palmer: 1-for-4, R, HR (5), 2 RBIs (10), 3 K (.916 OPS)
• LF Ryan Clifford: 1-for-2, R, 2B, RBI (13), BB, K (.805 OPS)
• RF Matt Rudick: 2-for-5, 2 R (.750 OPS)
• DH Nolan McLean: 0-for-4, 3 K (.541 OPS)

Even though Somerset jumped out to an early 5-0 lead, Palmer tried to get the Rumble Ponies into the game with a two-run home run in the bottom of the second. The 23-year-old has three home runs in six games this month after having two for the entire month of May.

Clifford had the other RBI via a sacrifice fly in the fifth. He drew a walk, which gives him 10 for the month of June (six strikeouts).

• RHP Tyler Stuart (1-5, 5.02): 2 IP, 5 ER, 6 H, BB, 2 K (35 of 55 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Jordan Geber (4.86): 3 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 K (30 of 44 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Nolan Clenney (7.71): 2 IP, 0 ER, 2 H, BB, 4 K (20 of 32 pitches for strikes)
• LHP Trey McLoughlin (1.02): 1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, K (6 of 7 pitches for strikes)

The Patriots offense was able to chase Stuart from the game early. The 24-year-old right-hander has lost each of his last three starts and failed to get out of the third inning in back-to-back games. The five Binghamton pitchers combined for ten strikeouts, including four from Clenney, which is a season-high.

High-A

Hudson Valley Renegades (31-27) 6, Brooklyn Cyclones (30-29) 0

BOX SCORE

• LF Christopher Suero: 1-for-3, BB (.820 OPS)
• 1B Mateo Gil: 1-for-3, K (.694 OPS)
• CF Nick Morabito: 0-for-4, K (.780 OPS)
• 3B Nick Lorusso: 0-for-4, 3 K (.828 OPS)

The Cyclones only managed to record two hits and combined to strike out 13 times against three Renegades pitchers. Those two hits came on infield singles from Suero in the top of the first and from Gil in the fifth.

• LHP Felipe De La Cruz (3-5, 4.00): 1.1 IP, 6 ER, 7 H, 2 BB, K (29 of 45 pitches for strikes)
• RHP Jeffrey Colon (6.28): 6.2 IP, 0 ER, 4 H, 6 K (47 of 70 pitches for strikes)

Wednesday night was arguably the worst outing of the year for De La Cruz. The Renegades had three doubles against him and the first eight batters of the second inning reached base against him (six runs). Colon did a good job of saving the bullpen, as he had a season-high for both innings pitched and strikeouts in an outing.

Low-A

The St. Lucie Mets (19-39) had their game against the Jupiter Hammerheads (32-26) postponed due to rain. They will make up the game as part of a doubleheader on Thursday, with Game 1 beginning at 4 p.m. ET.

Florida Complex League

The FCL Mets (11-14) had their game against the FCL Marlins (17-7) postponed due to rain. They will make up the game on June 24.

Dominican Summer League

DSL Phillies White (2-4) 8, DSL Mets Orange (2-4) 5

BOX SCORE

• 2B Diover De Aza: 1-for-4, 2 RBIs (3), 2 K (.619 OPS)
• SS Bohan Adderley: 1-for-3, R, RBI (5), K (.898 OPS)
• C Yovanny Rodriguez: 1-for-3, 3B, RBI (2), BB, K (.568 OPS)
• RF Enderson Asencio: 1-for-1, 2 R, 2 BB (.750 OPS)
• LF Leandy Mella: 1-for-4, 2B, 2 K (.683 OPS)

The Mets were constantly playing catchup to the Phillies on Wednesday, but Rodriguez was able to help contribute to the comeback attempt with an RBI triple in the bottom of the third. He also has at least one walk in four of the last five games. As for De Aza, he had a two-run single in the fifth that cut the lead to 7-4 at the time. The 16-year-old has at least one hit in four of the last five games.

• RHP Jonathan Jimenez (0-1, 3.68): 3 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 K
• RHP Nehomar Turmero (11.25): 1.1 IP, 3 ER, 1 H, 2 BB, 3 K
• LHP Angel De La Rosa (6.75): 1 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, K

The main damage that Jimenez allowed came in the first inning when the Phillies put two runs on the board. As a team, the Phillies had three doubles and stole four bases in the win.

The post Mets Minors Recap: Rylan Bannon Homers for Syracuse appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

This past week, Nick Lorusso and Felipe De La Cruz were brilliant for the Brooklyn Cyclones, carrying the team to a 4-2 series win. Luisangel Acuña also got his season non the right track. They weren’t the only notable players this week, though. For more on the individual stats and team performances from this past week, let’s get into the latest Mets Minors Weekly Report.

Luisangel Acuña. Photo Credit: James Farrance

Triple-A Syracuse

The Syracuse Mets had a rare seven-game series due to a makeup of a previously postponed game. Because of the odd number of games played, the Mets were able to win the series 4-3. They fell down 2-1 and 3-2 but picked up the last two games to secure the series win. Syracuse now sits at 31-19 and in second place in the International League East division.

Jose Iglesias was the Mets’ best batter this week, recording a 1.084 OPS in six games. He recorded 10 hits, including three doubles and a home run to raise his OPS to .810 on the year.

Luke Ritter paced the Mets hitters in terms of power this week, recording three home runs and ten RBIs in seven games played. He also recorded two doubles and a stolen base to raise his OPS on the year to .884.

Rylan Bannon had a great week in terms of eye discipline, drawing 11 walks in seven games. He recorded just three hits, though two were home runs. His ability to get on base and hit for power raised his season. OPS to .897.

Maybe the best performance of the week to see, though, was Luisangel Acuña, who had 11 hits, a 2:1 BB/K ratio, and three stolen bases in seven games. Following a rough start to the season, Acuña appears to be fully comfortable, though he’s still lacking pop at the plate. His season OPS is now .654.

As the Mets look for backup middle infield help at the MLB level, Iglesias, Ritter, Bannon and Acuña are all potential candidates to eventually get the call this year.

By far the most productive Syracuse pitcher this week was José Buttó, who made two starts and threw 11 scoreless innings. He’s also allowed just six baserunners and has 11 strikeouts in that span. Buttó was recently sent down after a start in the majors where he lacked control, but he has been impeccable through two starts since. His ERA through three Triple-A starts is 1.13.

The best non-starter of the week was Eric Orze, who did allow an earned run in just 2 2/3 innings, but he struck out six batters. On the year, Orze now has 33 punchouts in 24 1/3 innings. His ERA for a reliever is on the higher side at 3.70, but he’s only allowing a .179 batting average.

Double-A Binghamton

The Binghamton Rumble Ponies played a six-game series this week and then started a series with the Harrisburg Senators on Monday. In the seven total games, Binghamton went 4-3. They split their series in Reading, dropping the last two games of the series, before putting together a 7-3 victory in the next series opener on Monday. Binghamton is now 24-20 and in first place in the Eastern League Northeast division.

Jeremiah Jackson had a relatively rough week at the plate, only recording four hits and a .709 OPS in six games played, but he led the team by hitting three home runs, all of which were solo shots and the only runs he drove in this week. Two of his home runs came in Sunday’s game. Despite the overall poor week, Jackson’s season OPS actually raised to .572.

Wyatt Young was Binghamton’s best hitter this week, recording seven total hits including two home runs and a triple in six games played. Young has been great for Binghamton this year, and he’s now raised his season OPS to .854.

Kevin Parada is also looking good after a dreadful start to the year. He recorded nine hits in six games this week, including a home run, a triple, and six RBIs. He continues to raise his season OPS, which now sits at .682.

Brandon Sproat was the only Binghamton starter to make two starts this week, and he made the most of his performances. He threw a combined 14 innings and allowed three earned runs with 14 strikeouts and three walks. All of Sproat’s earned runs were given up via three separate solo home runs. Sproat has been brilliant between Brooklyn and Binghamton this year, and he now possesses a 1.42 ERA on the year between the two clubs.

Justin Jarvis had his best start in the Mets organization, throwing 5 1/3 scoreless innings while striking out 10. Jarvis hasn’t been particularly effective since coming over in a midseason trade for Mark Canha a year ago, especially when pitching in Triple-A, but he now holds a 3.14 ERA on the year with Binghamton.

Joining the group of fantastic starts this week was Tyler Stuart, who only pitched five innings, but he struck out nine and allowed just one earned run. Stuart continues to lower his season ERA, which now sits at 3.61.

Kevin Parada. Photo by Bronson Harris of Binghamton Rumble Ponies

High-A Brooklyn

The Brooklyn Cyclones defeated the Hudson Valley Renegades, 4-2, in a six-game series this week. Brooklyn won the first two games by a score of 10-2 before dropping the third game of the series 16-3, and then won the next two games of the series by a combined score of 14-4 before dropping the final game, 4-2. Brooklyn is now 24-21 and in third place in the South Atlantic League North division.

Nick Lorusso has quietly been one of the best hitters in the Mets system this year, and he added on to his reputation by going 7-for-14 with three home runs, a triple, and having a 2:1 BB/K ratio. His OPS on the week was a whopping 1.874, and on the season it’s now .938.

Stanley Consuegra also had a fantastic week at the plate. He only recorded three hits, but two of them were home runs and he also added four walks. His OPS on the week sits above 1.000, but on the season it’s a much lower .682.

While William Lugo also struggled from a contact perspective, he recorded six walks in six games to give him an .846 OPS on the week. On the season, that number has raised to .599.

Felipe De La Cruz had a phenomenal start this week, throwing six shutout innings and striking out 13 in a thoroughly dominating performance. He allowed just two hits and a walk in the outing. De La Cruz now has a 50:16 K:BB ratio this year and has dropped his ERA to 2.68.

Jonah Tong has also settled in nicely in Brooklyn, as he made two starts and struck out 11 in 8 2/3 innings. He gave up just one earned run, and actually raised his ERA on the season to 0.90.

Kade Morris (6 IP, 1 ER, 7 K) and Douglas Orellana (4 2/3 IP, 0 ER, 5 K) were two other pitchers who looked comfortable this week for Binghamton. For Morris, it was a successful first start in Double-A this year, while Orellana now has a 1.06 ERA on the year.

Kade Morris, Photo by Ryan Levy of Nevada Athletics

Low-A St. Lucie

The St. Lucie Mets continue to be dreadful this year, and that showed up in a 5-1 series loss this week to the Clearwater Threshers. St. Lucie won the first game of the series by one run before dropping the next five in a row by a combined score of 44-19. The team continues to be in dead last in the Florida State League East division at 14-31.

Willy Fanas had a productive first week in Low-A ball after starting the year in the FCL. In four games, he recorded six hits including a triple and a home run, and he also tacked on two RBIs. His OPS through those four games is 1.036.

The only other productive batter for the week who played in the majority of games was Colin Houck, who had five hits including three doubles in four games played. Houck has struggled mightily, and his season OPS is now .557.

As the performance of the team suggests, there were very few pitching performances to sing home about either. Ryan Ammons and Andinson Ferrer each had over three scoreless innings out of the bullpen this week, while pretty much the entire rotation struggled to put together positive performances.

Florida Complex League Mets

The FCL Mets went 3-1 this past week, putting their season record at 9-6. The team is currently sitting in second place in the Florida Complex League East division.

The most productive FCL Mets hitters this past week were Julio Zayas (1.271 OPS) and Yonatan Henriquez (1.018 OPS). A.J. Ewing (.651 OPS) and Jeremy Rodriguez (.737 OPS) also added home runs.

The best pitching performances this week came from Yoljeldriz Diaz (5 1/3 IP, ER, 8 K), Jesus Palacios (5 1/3 IP, ER, 8 K), Rafael Gonzalez (4 1/3 IP, ER, 8 K), Hansel Rosario (6 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 8 K), and Trevor Harrison (5 IP, 0 ER, 7 K). The FCL team continues to get production from a handful of different players, leading to their strong start to the season so far.

Organizational Leaders

Batting

AVG – Nick Morabito (STL/BRK) – .356

OPS – Ben Gamel (SYR) – .962

HR – Trayce Thompson (SYR) – 13

SB – Omar De Los Santos (BRK) – 25

Pitching

(Among Qualified Players)

ERA – Jonah Tong (STL/BRK) – 0.90

SO – Jonah Tong (STL/BRK) – 62

WHIP – Jonah Tong (STL/BRK) – 0.95

Players of the Week

Offense – Nick Lorusso, 1B/3B Brooklyn

The players of the week are a pair of Cyclones who are well beyond deserving. Nick Lorusso continues to hit at an extremely high level and has been one of the more under-the-radar Mets prospects because of that. His .938 OPS proves that he’s been Brooklyn’s best hitter this year, and it might not be before long that the 23-year-old is in Binghamton.

Pitching – Felipe De La Cruz, P Brooklyn

This one was more of a no-brainer, as no pitcher was as dominant as De La Cruz was this week. A six-inning, 13-strikeout appearance while allowing just three baserunners is an amazing feat. De La Cruz has been another under-the-radar player in the Mets minor leagues this year, but his pitching so far this season and as of late is certainly putting his name out there more.

Upcoming Schedule – May 28 – June 2

Triple-A Syracuse: vs. Buffalo

Double-A Binghamton: vs. Harrisburg

High-A Brooklyn: @ Jersey Shore

Low-A St. Lucie: @ Dunedin

The post Mets Minors Weekly Report: Luisangel Acuña Rakes for Syracuse appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Luisangel Acuña. Photo Credit: James Farrance

Triple-A

Scranton Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (32-18) 6, Syracuse Mets (30-19) 9

BOX SCORE

• SS Luisangel Acuña: 4-for-5, R, 2B, SB (17), K (.654 OPS)
• 1B Luke Ritter: 2-for-5, 2 R, HR (9), 2B, 5 RBI (32), 2 K (.877 OPS)
• RF Rhylan Thomas 2-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI (3), BB (.668 OPS)
• DH Mike Brosseau 1-for-4, 2 R, RBI (15), K (.832 OPS)

Syracuse jumped all over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre from the start of the game, scoring all nine of their runs in the first two innings. The red-hot Luisangel Acuña collected four hits, including a seventh-inning double, stretching his on-base streak to 10 games. Luke Ritter drove in five Mets and hit his ninth home run of the year. That is second on the team behind Trayce Thompson (13 home runs).

• RHP Dom Hamel (7.36 ERA) 3 1/3 IP, 6 ER, 8 H, 4 BB, 3 K (82 pitches/44 strikes)
• RHP Ty Adcock (7.71 ERA) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB, 2 K
• RHP Grant Hartwig (2.60 ERA) 2 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K

Hamel’s struggles in 2024 persisted in his Saturday outing. His inability to strike out batters at the same clip as in previous seasons, in addition to nearly doubling career BB/9, has led to less-than-ideal results for the top prospect. Hamel gave up six runs while allowing 12 baserunners in only 3 1/3 innings on the mound.

Luckily, the Syracuse bullpen dominated the rest of the way. The rest of the Mets staff combined to throw 5 2/3 innings of scoreless ball, allowing only two hits and striking out 10 RailRiders. Newly signed Ty Adcock pitched a perfect inning in his Syracuse debut.

JT Schwartz. Photo by Bronson Harris of Binghamton Rumble Ponies

Double-A

Binghamton Rumble Ponies (23-19) 6, Reading Fightin’ Phils (19-25) 12 In 7 Innings

BOX SCORE

• 3B JT Schwartz 4-for-4, R, 2 RBI (14) (.758 OPS)
• RF Alex Ramírez: 2-for-5, R, 2B, 3 RBI (21), K (.677 OPS)
• C Kevin Parada: 1-for-4, R, 2B, BB, 2 K (.674 OPS)
• DH Nolan McLean 1-for-4, RBI (2), 2 K (.666 OPS)

The Rumble Ponies dropped the penultimate game of their series against Reading in an abbreviated seven-inning contest due to inclement weather. Alex Ramírez gave the Ponies a lead in the third inning with a two-RBI double, but Reading put up nine unanswered runs and never relinquished the lead. 

• RHP Joander Suarez (3.74 ERA) 3 1/3 IP, 7 ER, 8 H, 2 BB, 3 K (92 pitches/ 58 strikes)
• RHP Junior Santos (4.67 ERA) 1 2/3 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 0 BB, 3 K
• RHP Carlos Guzman (10.30 ERA) 1 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 0 K

Binghamton’s pitchers have a rough go on Saturday night, each giving up multiple runs and combining to allow 14 hits in only six innings. It was a nasty, rainy evening that eventually canceled the game, but Suarez and his peers did not bring their typical stuff to the ballpark. 

Felipe De La Cruz. Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

High-A

Hudson Valley Renegades (20-21) 3, Brooklyn Cyclones (24-20) 7

BOX SCORE

• CF Stanley Consuegra 1-for-3, 2 R, HR (5), RBI (18), BB (.686 OPS)
• 3B Nick Lorusso 2-for-3, 2 R, BB (.925 OPS)
• RF Karell Paz 1-for-2, R, HR (2), 3 RBI (5), BB (.800 OPS)
• SS William Lugo 2-for-3, 2 2B, 2 RBI (17), BB (.614 OPS)

The Cyclones received dominant pitching and plenty of offense for the second night in a row as they defeated Hudson Valley. The Cyclones put up seven runs for the second consecutive night, led by Consuegra’s first inning, first pitch home run. Nick Lorusso continued his impressive stay in Coney Island, raising OPS to .925 and boasting a 155 wRC+.

Consuegra fueled the Brooklyn offense again with his second homer in as many days.

• LHP Felipe De La Cruz (2.68 ERA) 6 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 13 K (90 pitches/ 62 strikes)
• RHP Dakota Hawkins (4.01 ERA) 1 IP, 1 ER, 2 H, 0 BB, 2 K
• RHP Justin Lawson (2.14 ERA) 2 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 2 H, 0 BB, 3 K

Building off Douglas Orellana‘s start from the previous day, Felipe De La Cruz returned to his dominant self. While holding the Renegades to a measly three baserunners in six innings, De La Cruz struck out a career-high 13 batters.

Ronald Hernandez. Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized

Low-A

Clearwater Threshers (31-13) 6, St. Lucie Mets (14-30) 0

BOX SCORE

• C Ronald Hernandez 1-for-3, BB, K (.722 OPS)
• 3B Marco Vargas: 0-for-3, BB, SB (6), K (.683 OPS)
• SS Colin Houck 0-for-4, 4 K (.557 OPS)

St. Lucie was held to only one hit in their second blowout loss to Clearwater. The Mets struck out 12 times while leaving six baserunners stranded. 

• LHP Franklin Gomez  (4.26 ERA) 5 1/3 IP, 4 R (3 ER), 3 H, 3 BB, 8 K
• LHP Jeremy Peguero (3.38 ERA) 2 2/3 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 3 H, 2 BB, 3 K

Franklin Gomez struck out eight Threshers while allowing most of the damage in his fourth inning on a Devin Saltiban three-run homer.

Jeremy Rodriguez. Photo by Ed Delany of Metmerized

Florida Complex League

FCL-Astros (4-12) 6, FCL-Mets (9-6) 2

BOX SCORE

• 2B Jeremy Rodriguez  1-for-4, R, SB (7), K (.886 OPS)
• 3B Yonatan Henriquez 1-for-2, RBI (3), SB (8), BB (.768 OPS)
• SS Branny De Oleo 1-for-3, SB (1), K (.675 OPS)

Jeremy Rodriguez is tied for third in the Florida Complex League hits leaderboard with 19 through 14 games. 

• RHP Joseph Yabbour (3.97 ERA) 3 2/3 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 4 K

Mets pitchers combined to allow seven walks and ten hits while striking out 11 batters.

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