League Rankings

Baseball America: 14
MLB Pipeline: 10
FanGraphs: 14
The Athletic: 11

Baseball has updated its farm system rankings since the last article on the Phillies, bumping the Phillies from 14 to 20 and moving the Nationals into the No. 14 spot. The Nationals  have a clear top-half farm system, but also clearly not one of the premier systems in the game. Part of that is due to the graduation of James Wood, a blue-chip prospect who played enough last year to no longer be considered one. Wood will be the primary left fielder for Washington this year, and in the other corner will be the organization’s current top prospect.

James Wood. (Mike Janes/Four Seam Images)

Crews and Wood

Dylan Crews is the No. 4 prospect on MLB Pipeline, the No. 6 prospect on Baseball America, and the No. 7 prospect on The Athletic. He’s one of the best prospects in baseball, and he’ll be the Opening Day right fielder opposite Wood in left. Together, the Nationals could have a pair of young corner outfielders hitting back-to-back in the heart of their order for the next six years at a minimum.

Crews is the higher draft pick than Wood, taken No. 2 overall in the 2023 MLB Draft directly after Paul Skenes went to the Pittsburgh Pirates, and he is the only one of the two actually drafted by the Nationals. Wood, the No. 62 overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft by the San Diego Padres, was acquired by the Nationals in the trade that sent future Met Juan Soto out west. He’s also about seven months younger than Crews despite being drafted two years earlier because he was drafted out of high school, while Crews spent three years at LSU.

Wood, who torched the minors and impressed in his first taste of MLB action in 2024, is probably the better hitter. Aside from a five-game stint in rookie ball in 2022, Wood never posted an OPS that started with anything lower than an eight at any step along the way. It was often even better than that, culminating in a 1.053 OPS in 53 games in Triple-A before his big league promotion in 2024. He played 79 games for the Nationals last season, hitting .264/.354/.427 (.781 OPS), good for a 120 wRC+. As a 21-year-old rookie, that’s impressive. Wood has his faults, he strikes out at a clip higher than the league average and he is not a good fielder, but his bat is very, very real. The Nationals can hide him in left field and get away with it while likely hitting him third, right behind Crews.

Crews is still a great prospect in his own right, even if his bat wasn’t quite as good in the minors as Woods. There’s a reason he’s a consensus top-10 prospect across the league. He was pushed aggressively through the minors, making it all the way to Double-A just months after being drafted. He played 20 games there in 2023, and while he tore up rookie ball and Single-A (he skipped High-A), he finally struggled once he got to Double-A.

He returned to Double-A to begin 2024 and was much better, but not outstanding. In 51 games, he hit .274/.343/.446 (.789 OPS) with five home runs and 15 stolen bases. He was promoted to Triple-A and turned in a very similar line, slashing .265/.340/.455 (.795 OPS) with eight home runs and 10 stolen bases in 49 games. There were 30 22-year-olds to have at least 200 plate appearances at Triple-A last season. Crews’ OPS ranked 16th and his wRC+ of 106 ranked 15th. Wood, who also fit that criteria, ranked first in both statistics.

Nevertheless, the Nationals promoted Crews to the big leagues in late August. He played in 31 games for the Nationals to close out the year and narrowly preserved his rookie status for 2025. He didn’t do great, hitting .218/.288/.353 (.641 OPS) with three home runs and 12 stolen bases in 132 plate appearances. However, it’s a small sample size, his peripherals for the most part looked at least league average, and his track record provides enough confidence that he’ll be better in 2025.

Both Baseball America and Pipeline have Crews with a 60-grade hit and power tool and have him as a 70-grade runner. Unlike Wood, he’s a plus-glove and can play center field, although he’ll likely end up in right. Crews won a lot of awards for his bat in college and has still hit the ball hard in pro ball. Baseball America touted his well-roundedness as a hitter and Keith Law of The Athletic wrote that Crews, “still shows the underlying characteristics of an above-average hitter in the big leagues.” Ultimately, results are the most important thing, but he has plenty of time to turn his pedigree and batted-ball data into tangible results.

Dylan Crews. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Other Top Players To Know

Behind Crews in Washington’s farm system are a couple of first-round pick bats and then a trio of arms with really exciting tools.

Brady House, the No. 11 overall pick in 2021, was a much hotter prospect name a year ago and was even ranking in the middle-third of the various top 100 prospect lists, but he has since fallen off them. A third baseman, House took off in 2023, going from Single-A to High-A to Double-A all in one season and having success at each stop. In 88 games between the three levels, House hit .312/.365/.497 (.862 OPS) with 12 home runs and 36 extra-base hits. He did this while striking out at a 23.8% clip and not walking much, which ended up rearing its ugly head in 2024.

House’s flaws were only worsened in 2024. His strikeout rate went up to 26.4% which was the 10th-highest of the 48 players aged 21 or younger to have at least 500 minor-league plate appearances in 2024; only a little better than Mets prospect Ryan Clifford. What Clifford did though that House didn’t was take the free pass, with House only walking at a 5.7% clip. That was the third-worst of the same 48 players, and House ultimately ended up with the worst BB/K ratio of the entire group. If House is going to be a major-league player, he needs to fix that. He was a high school draftee and will turn just 22 years old in June, so he has time.

Seaver King, the No. 10 overall pick in 2024, is worth keeping an eye on as he begins his professional career. An athletic player who can play the infield or outfield, King has a high-swing, high-contact profile with probably below-average power. He played well in a small taste of pro ball last season, hitting .295/.367/.385 (.754 OPS) in 20 games at Single-A. A college bat who started his NCAA career in Division II before transferring to Wake Forest and playing himself into a top-10 pick, King is an interesting prospect with a nice story.

Now, onto the arms. Travis Sykora was one of the breakout pitching prospects from the 2024 season. A third-round pick in 2023 who signed for well, well over-slot value, he spent his entire 2024 season in Single-A and excelled. In 20 starts, Sykora had a 2.33 ERA and 0.91 WHIP with 129 strikeouts to just 27 walks in 85 innings. He led all Single-A pitchers in strikeouts despite throwing dozens of fewer innings than anyone near him.

His fastball sits in the mid-90s with a 60-grade from MLB Pipeline and 65-grade from Baseball America. He pairs that with a slider and splitter that both received plus grades from both outlets. His control is the biggest question mark, but both outlets have it at average and he clearly didn’t struggle with it in 2024. With a strong 2025, Sykora will skyrocket up boards and become one of the highest-ranked pitching prospects in baseball.

On Thursday, Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo informed reporters that Sykora underwent surgery on his hip over the winter, which will likely keep him out until May. It shouldn’t be a major setback and it’s not an arm injury, so as long as he comes back fully healthy the injury shouldn’t impact his prospect status too much.

Jarlin Susana, who accompanied Wood from San Diego in the Soto deal, is one of the most exciting pitching prospects in baseball. He might not be one of the best, still top 100, but definitely one of the most exciting. Susana’s calling card is his velocity. He regularly throws in the triple digits and has hit 103. He struggled in 2023, posting an ERA above five while displaying the control issues that plague many hard throwers, but took a big step in the right direction in 2024. His results still weren’t amazing, as his ERAs at both Single-A and High-A were in the low fours, but it was an improvement.

The most encouraging thing? Susana walked just 48 in 103 and 2/3 innings after walking 40 in 63 innings the year before. He also struck out 157 batters and had a top 10 K% among minor-league pitchers who threw at least 80 innings. Sykora was No. 1. Susana’s fastball has a 70-grade on Baseball America and a 75-grade on Pipeline, along with a plus slider and about average changeup. There’s a ton of relief risk here, but there’s no doubt Susana has one of the most electric arms in the minor leagues.

Staying on the trend of great fastballs is Alex Clemmey, a second-round pick in 2023 by the Cleveland Guardians who was sent to Washington for Lane Thomas at the 2024 trade deadline. His fastball sits in the mid-90s and can reach the high-90s, and he has a couple of solid breaking balls and offspeed pitches. His results weren’t outstanding in 2024 but they weren’t awful putting up a 4.58 ERA in 92.1 Single-A innings with a lot of strikeouts and a lot of walks. He’s still just 19 years old so he is far, far out from the big leagues, but Clemmey is definitely a name to monitor.

Tyler Stuart. Photo by Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

2025 Impacts?

The Nationals farm system is full of players who could play in the big leagues in 2024, which is perfect for where they are as a team. Obviously, Crews will be the Opening Day right fielder, but there are plenty of others who could make impacts during the long season. One is House, who is already at Triple-A. If he can right the ship he could end up as the team’s third baseman, where the current starter is projected to be José Tena.

Outfielder Robert Hassell III, another piece of the Soto deal, is also up to Triple-A. Once a very high-rated prospect and a the No. 8 overall pick in 2020, Hassell has really struggled since arriving to the Nationals. He appeared at Double-A in three-straight seasons following the trade and finally turned in a good showing in 2024, and even then his OPS was still just .728. He then got to finish out the year in Triple-A and slumped hard, hitting .125 with a .344 OPS in 17 games. Hassell has the draft pedigree where he’ll keep getting chances, and if he turns it around in 2025 he could be a big-league option.

Yohandy Morales is another bat who could enter the mix for 2025. The No. 40 overall pick in 2023, Morales was great in the months immediately following the draft and a little less great but still solid in 2024. He spent the majority of his season in Double-A, posting an OPS in the mid-70s. If he can at least keep that up and ideally improve in Triple-A in 2025, he could be very in the mix for one of the corner infield spots at some point.

The Nationals also have a ton of pitching options, headlined by 2020 No. 22 overall pick Cade Cavalli. The flamethrower got roughed up in his one and only MLB appearance back in 2022, and then missed all of 2023 and most of 2024 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He’s only had success in his minor league career, so as long as he’s healthy, he should at least have a chance to crack the Opening Day rotation that is rather thin after MacKenzie Gore and Jake Irvin. If not, he’ll certainly get a chance at some point.

Other players who fit that bill are Andry Lara and Brad Lord. Lara had a lot of success at Double-A last season and should make the move to Triple-A to begin 2024, and Lord made that move himself last year and pitched well. Former Mets prospect Tyler Stuart is also an option. Stuart, sent to the Nationals in the Jesse Winker trade, was one of the best pitchers in the Mets’ system in 2023 and pitched well again in 2024 before the trade. He had a stellar four starts in Double-A for Washington before struggling in four Triple-A starts, but he is definitely an option to at least make a spot start for the Nationals at some point in the season.

The post NL East Farm System Analysis: Washington Nationals appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

No 5. Kyle Stowers, MIA

Kyle Stowers, 27, was traded to Miami in the Taylor Rogers deal last season. He and Connor Norby were the headliners heading back to the fish, but Stowers’ Miami tenure did not start as he would’ve liked. Stowers slashed .186/.262/.295, producing an abysmal OPS of .556. Underlying metrics are somewhat a fan of the former O’s top prospect, as his batted ball numbers were solid with a 51.3 HardHit% and 10.9 Barrel%.

Stowers is projected to start in LF for the Marlins and have a much better season. ZiPS projects the lefty to post a  103 wRC+ with 18 homers over 460 PAs, which would be solid for the Marlins, the rebuilding fish could use a breakout-type player in Stowers to start moving things the right way.

No 4. Max Kepler, PHI

Max Kepler just recently acquired this offseason by the Phillies will be a key piece to this season if he can put up numbers like he did in 2023 (123 wRC+, 2.8 fWAR). Last year was a rough year for Kepler posted a below-average 94 wRC+ in 399 plate appearances. However, the poor performance could be linked to a knee injury sustained to Kepler that was addressed in the offseason. If Kepler can recover and play to the back of his baseball card, the $10M price tag could look like a bargain for the Phils.

Projections are somewhat all together on how they view him as a league-average bat with about 1 and change fWAR to go with it. For the Phillies to go on a deep run this year, Kepler will have to be better than last year.

No 3. James Wood, WSH

The 22-year-old superstar and former top prospect for the Nationals is poised to have a massive breakout season. In those 79 games in 2024, James Wood was elite, putting up a 120 wRC+, .354 OBP, and 52.0 HardHit%. His bat has a ton of pop but he only had 9 homers in 336 PAs. The main culprit was Wood’s inability to pull the ball, registering only a 31.8 percentage on pulled balls.

It’s not farfetched to say Wood can easily be a 20-20 player next season. He hits the ball hard enough to eclipse the 20-homer plateau, and he stole 14 bases last season while in the 85th Percentile in sprint speed. The potential is there, but only time will tell if Wood will suffer a sophomore slump or breakout into being one of baseball’s best stars.

No 2. Jurickson Profar, ATL

Jurickson Profar was rewarded by the Braves with a three-year, $42 million contract after registering his best season in the majors with the Padres. The former No. 1 overall prospect in baseball had an electric, as he put up an elite wRC+ of 139, which was 12th best in baseball.

There are zero questions about his bat, which could debatably put Profar No. 1 on this list. But his defense in the field and poor base running kept him at No. 2. This past season he had a -7 OAA and 26.5 SprintSpeed which were in the bottom percentiles of each respective stats.

There are some doubts if Profar is going to bring the hot bat into the new season, as his barrel% was a 7.2 (43rd percentile), and with a high BABIP, it will be interesting to see if the 31-year-old outfielder will be able to bring elite level production to the Braves. Nonetheless, he deserves to be No. 2 on this list after this past season.

No 1. Brandon Nimmo, NYM

Brandon Nimmo solidifies himself at No. 1 on MMO’s top-five left fielder’s list. Nimmo is coming off an alright season last year where he battled through plantar fasciitis for a majority of the second half and playoffs. The injury could be seen in his first and second-half splits, as his OPS went from .815 in the first half to .596 during the second half. Nimmo is expected to be ready for opening day, and if he’s even 95% that will be huge as read previously when he was nearly fully healthy he was one of the best-hitting outfielders in baseball. Here at MMO, we have Brandon Nimmo slotting into the No. 5 slot in the lineup just behind Pete Alonso.

During the 2024 season, Nimmo set a career-high in stolen bases (15) and he did that without getting caught once. Something to keep an eye on is Nimmo stealing bases, wouldn’t expect it early if he’s still battling the plantar fasciitis that he had surgery on during the offseason, but as the season progresses, it could be something he does more of.

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The Mets look to take a series against the Nationals tonight as they continue their four-game set in DC. Monday, the Mets finally awoke in the 10th inning, scoring six runs. The bullpen made things dicey, but the Mets would hold onto a 9-7 win. Tuesday was another big extra-inning win for the Mets. Brandon Nimmo sent the game into extras for the Mets, and the bats exploded in the 10th inning, again securing a 7-2 win. Now the Mets look to repeat with Christian Scott on the mound.

Christian Scott. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-USA TODAY Sports

Mets Lineup

1. Francisco Lindor – SS
2. Brandon Nimmo – LF
3. J.D. Martinez – DH
4. Pete Alonso – 1B
5. Mark Vientos – 3B
6. Luis Torrens – C
7. Tyrone Taylor – RF
8. Jose Iglesias – 2B
9. Ben Gamel – RF

Christian Scott finally returns to the Mets rotation! Scott was successful in five starts for the Mets a few weeks ago, where he pitched 27 2/3 innings with a 3.90 ERA, 3.52 FIP, 1.084 WHIP, and a 99 ERA+. As other members of the Mets rotation rehabbed from injury and the Mets playing schedule got more spread out, Scott was optioned back to the minors. He has made four starts over the last month with Syracuse, where he allowed four earned runs (one in each start) over 17 innings, striking out 19 batters. The only concern has been opposing batters hitting three homers against him during that stretch. This will be his first start against the Nationals in his career.

Opposing Lineup

1. CJ Abrams – SS
2. Lane Thomas – RF
3. James Wood – LF
4. Jesse Winker – DH
5. Keibert Ruiz – C
6. Luis García Jr. – 2B
7. Joey Meneses – 1B
8. Ildemaro Vargas – 3B
9. Jacob Young – CF

Mitchell Parker has had a solid start to his major league career. He’s made 14 starts in 2024, pitching 78 2/3 innings with a 3.32 ERA, 3.60 FIP, 1.119 WHIP, and 118 ERA+. Since June 6th, he has made five starts (28 2/3 innings) with a 2.83 ERA against the Braves, Tigers, Marlins, Rockies, and Rays. Despite the outcome, there are some signs that, at least more recently, he has been more hit-able. He has a 3.95 ERA, and since June 10th, his xwOBA has been above the league average (league average is a bit above .300, and over his last 100 PAs, his has been .362). This will be his first career start against the Mets.

Game Notes

The Mets designated Matt Festa for assignment to make room for Scott on the active roster. He gave up four runs in one inning earlier in his Mets debut over the weekend.

Kodai Senga is making his return to the mound tonight as the starting pitcher for the High-A Brooklyn Cyclones.

The Mets defeated the Nationals for a second straight night in the 10th inning. The Mets scored a combined five runs in the first nine innings of both games, and then eleven combined runs in the 10th innings.

Three Things To Watch For

1. Francisco Lindor: Major League Baseball will be announcing their All-Star rosters in a few days, and this is a great time to highlight a few players who are more than deserving to be on the All-Star team. Lindor went 2-for-5 last night with his 14th homer of the year. He’s been one of the best hitting and fielding shortstops in the majors this year (again) and yet still hasn’t been named to an All-Star game as a New York Met. He’s on track for a 25-25 season.
2. Brandon Nimmo: Nimmo has been a solid, top-hitting outfielder for several seasons now and still has not been named to an All-Star game. He has had an OPS+ of above 129 for five consecutive seasons and is currently on track to have about 25 home runs. Nimmo is coming off of a scary situation Monday where he fainted at the hotel. He didn’t start in Tuesday’s game but came off the bench and went 2-for-3 with his 16th double of the season.
3. Jose Iglesias: Has the All-Star game ever had an opening concert from a musical artist with a .974 OPS? Obviously, Iglesias hasn’t played enough this season to warrant a trip to the All-Star game, but he’s another key player to watch for the Mets tonight. His fifth double of the season gave the Mets the go-ahead run and started their 10th-inning rally on Tuesday night.

Let’s go Mets!

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Monday’s game was almost another disheartening loss for the Mets, who would have lost their third in a row. They held the lead into the eighth inning, but a baffling misplay by Tyrone Taylor on a blooper in right field allowed Jesse Winker to score from first to tie the game. The Nationals then had a chance to walk it off in the ninth when James Wood reached second base with nobody out, but Jake Diekman stranded him to give the Mets a chance, which they took full advantage of. Still, it wasn’t easy as the Nationals, somehow, made it a ballgame down six in the bottom of the 10th.

The first of the four-game series saw a matchup between David Peterson (3-0, 3.51 ERA) and MacKenzie Gore (6-7, 3.47 ERA), whom the Mets attacked for six runs in 4 1/3 innings the last time they saw him just under a month ago.

David Peterson had a relatively easy first two innings before running into trouble in the third. He recorded the first out of the inning before allowing four straight batters to reach on a walk and three singles, then getting a double play to get out of the inning. In total, the Nationals tagged Peterson for two runs in the inning.

The score remained 2-0 well into the middle innings as MacKenzie Gore had a much smoother go of it this time around against the Mets. He cruised through the lineup and avoided early trouble in the first inning after allowing a leadoff single to Francisco Lindor when Nick Senzel snatched a 107.6 miles-per-hour rocket off the bat of Harrison Bader and turned a nifty double play.

Gore eased his way from there until the sixth inning, when he exited the game with two outs and a runner on second due to a lofty pitch count. It appeared he could escape without a run on his ledger, but Derek Law came in and immediately allowed an RBI single to Mark Vientos, charging Gore with the run.

Vientos’ run-scoring hit made it a 2-1 game, and the inning became a disaster for the Nationals after CJ Abrams had a routine ground ball go through his legs to continue the inning. Francisco Alvarez then rocketed the first pitch he saw into the left-center field gap to drive in two and give the Mets a 3-2 lead.

Peterson settled in after his rough third inning and found himself pitching into the seventh inning. After a ground ball out and an infield single, he was removed from the game in favor of Dedniel Núñez, who easily got the two necessary outs to escape the inning.

The eighth inning looked like it would be another easy inning for Núñez, but Jesse Winker was able to reach on a walk. His ability to reach was especially irking, considering Núñez appeared to freeze him with a backdoor slider, but the home plate umpire ruled it a ball instead of a strike, which kept the inning alive. This is where Joey Meneses blooped a ball into right field, and Tyrone Taylor couldn’t play it properly, resulting in the tying run scoring.

The Mets went down 1-2-3 in the top of the ninth, allowing the Nationals a chance to walk it off. James Wood, MLB’s No. 3 overall prospect making his MLB debut, reached second base after Jake Diekman spiked a hurried throw to first base. He was unable to score, however, partly due to Tyrone Taylor making a game-saving grab on a Jacob Young line drive with two outs to bring the game to extras.

The Mets’ offense woke up right there, with J.D. Martinez breaking out of his slump with a huge three-run homer to put the Mets up three. From there, Francisco Alvarez and Jose Iglesias provided much-needed insurance runs, given what the Nationals would do in the bottom of the inning.

JD MARTINEZ!!! A clutch 3-run home run in the 10th makes it a 6-3 Mets lead!!! pic.twitter.com/lZluqNiqE5

— Metsmerized Online (@Metsmerized) July 2, 2024

Washington surely gave the Mets a scare, as Tyler Jay came on and somehow allowed the tying run to come to the plate after entering the game with a six-run lead. Jay allowed two walks and two doubles to score three runs, which led to Reed Garrett entering the game to bail him out. Garrett needed just one out to end the game, and he allowed yet another RBI hit to make it a 9-7 game with the winning run at the plate.

Reed Garrett then made every Mets fan sigh a huge breath of relief by striking out Luis García Jr. to put the game to bed. It was a rollercoaster, but every win counts the same. With that, the Mets are back to .500 at 41-41.

Stat of the Game: Extra-Inning Madness

The Mets played their 12th extra-inning game of the year, including their second consecutive game that extended past nine innings. They have eight losses in extras, which is the most of any team this year, but their six runs ensured that total wouldn’t reach nine. The Mets’ six runs tied a franchise record for the most runs scored in any extra inning of a game.

Player of the Game

J.D. Martinez’s three-run homer in the 10th inning was the difference, as the Mets only ended up winning by two. It was a huge hit for Martinez, who entered the game in the midst of his first real slump of the season. His home run was his only hit of the game, but he also walked twice. Martinez will continue to be a threat in the heart of the Mets’ order as they vie for a playoff spot.

On Deck

The Mets’ series with the Nationals continues on Tuesday at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. Sean Manaea (5-3, 3.89 ERA) will go up against rookie DJ Herz (1-2, 5.48 ERA) in a second consecutive battle of southpaws. Manaea is 1-1 with a 5.28 ERA in three career appearances against Washington and has not yet faced them this year. Meanwhile, Herz allowed four runs in four innings against New York earlier this year and will make just his sixth major league appearance.

Tuesday’s game will air on SNY, with the first pitch scheduled for 6:45 p.m. ET.

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Lucchesi took the mound, and started with a bang, striking out two of the three hitters he faced in the first inning, including Nationals top prospect James Wood. Lucchesi ran into some trouble in the fourth inning after he walked a hitter, who came home to score on a fielding error by Trayce Thompson.

Lucchesi gave way to Reed Garrett, who struck out four over two innings, allowing one hit. Grant Hartwig came out and pitched an inning where he allowed a single to Jacob Young and a double to Wood, but got Juan Yepez to ground out, which plated the Red Wings’ second run of the game. Yacksel Ríos finished off the game allowing a run on three hits while striking out two.

Photo Credit: James Farrance

In a good sight, two of the Mets’ top prospects, Drew Gilbert and Luisangel Acuña batted one and two respectively, with Mark Vientos batting fourth. Syracuse opened up the scoring in the second inning after drawing two walks and a single allowed Austin Allen to hit a sacrifice fly.

Two more runs would come across when Acuña reached on a fielding error. José Iglesias would hit an RBI single in the third, scoring Vientos who reached base on a five-pitch walk. In the bottom of the fourth, Gilbert and Acuña hit back-to-back homers off former Met Robert Gsellman, putting Syracuse ahead 6-1. That would be the last time the Syracuse Mets would score, but it would prove to be more than enough.

Lucchesi had a great first outing overall, only allowing two hits and one unearned run while walking one and striking out five. Expected to serve as starting pitching depth, it is good to see the veteran be able to anchor a staff that features three Mets prospects in Mike Vasil, Dominic Hamel, and Christian Scott.

The Syracuse offense was working all game, drawing walks, keeping the strikeouts to a minimum, and making contact, forcing the Red Wings to go to five pitchers on the night. In addition to his home run, Gilbert was hit by a pitch.

BOX SCORE

Hitters

CF Drew Gilbert 1-for-4, R, HR, RBI, 2 K, HBP
2B Luisangel Acuña 1-for-5, R, HR, RBI, K
3B Mark Vientos – 0-for-3, R, BB
SS José Iglesias – 2-for-3, R, RBI, BB

Pitchers

LHP Joey Lucchesi – 5 IP, 1 R (0 ER), 2 H, 1 BB, 5 K
RHP Reed Garrett – 2 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 4 K
RHP Grant Hartwig – 1 IP, 1 ER, 2 H
RHP Yacksel Ríos – 1 IP, 1 ER, 3 H, 2 K

PLAYER OF THE GAME

Drew Gilbert started the season with a bang, reaching base in his first two plate appearances, including the leadoff home run in the fourth inning. Gilbert has a very promising blend of sneaky power, good defensive ability at all three outfield positions, and plays hard every game. It will be exciting to see how he refines his best skills in Triple-A and how long it will take the Mets to call him up to the big leagues

ON DECK

The Syracuse Mets (1-0) will continue their series against the Red Wings (0-1) at 1:05 P.M. Thaddeus Ward takes the mound for the Red Wings, while the Syracuse Mets haven’t announced a starter. 

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A 1985 Mets promo would have worked well.

Clifford (acquired from the Houston Astros in the Justin Verlander trade at last season’s deadline) lined an opposite-field double into the left-field corner to score Drew Gilbert, whom the Mets also acquired for Verlander, in the first inning after he reached second base on an error where Nationals right fielder James Wood lost a fly ball in the sun. Catcher Kevin Parada later drove home Clifford in the fourth while shortstop Jeremy Rodriguez and catcher Vincent Perozo added RBI singles in the fifth.

Credit: Ed Delany of Metsmerized

Right-hander Dominic Hamel, a 2021 third round pick from Dallas Baptist University, got the start for the Mets. The 25-year-old gave up one run on two hits and a walk in two innings while striking out two. Tyler Stuart (age 24, 2022 draft, sixth round, University of Southern Mississippi) threw a scoreless third inning as he looks to build on a stellar 2023 campaign.

Blade Tidwell (age 22, 2022 draft, second round, University of Tennessee) surrendered one run on three singles and a walk in the fourth. He was aided by a 6-4-3 double play that was nicely turned by Marco Vargas.

Nolan McLean (age 22, 2023 draft, third round, Oklahoma State University) threw a scoreless fifth with one strikeout. McLean is a two-way player who can also play third base and the outfield.

Brandon Sproat (age 23, 2023, second round, University of Florida) pitched a perfect sixth with two strikeouts. Calvin Ziegler (age 21, 2021 draft, second round, TNXL Academy High School, Altamonte Springs, Florida) fanned two in a perfect seventh for the save.

Notes

Jett Williams hit leadoff and was 0-for-2 with two strikeouts. Luisangel Acuña, younger brother of Ronald Acuña Jr., went 0-for-2 with a strikeout. Vargas finished 0-for-1 with two walks and a run scored. In addition to his RBI double, Clifford walked and scored.

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