Photo by Roberto Carlo

The New York Mets have today announced a number of roster moves. Yolmer Sánchez, who was claimed off waivers from the Boston Red Sox earlier this week, has been activated and will wear #43.

Sànchez will be with the Mets in Philadelphia as they open up a four-game series against the Phillies tonight, and he will provide some insurance in the infield with Eduardo Escobar and Luis Guillorme both out injured. Sánchez appeared in 14 games for the Red Sox this season, making 12 starts at second base. He went 4-for-37 at the plate this season and is a career .243/.299/.350 hitter.

In order to make room for Sánchez on the roster, infielder Deven Marrero has been designated for assignment. Marrero featured in three games for the Mets this season with four plate appearances.

Outfielder Nick Plummer has cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Syracuse. The fact that Plummer has cleared waivers is good news for the Mets given that he showed promise in his 14 games in the big leagues this season. In 31 plate appearances, Plummer hit .138/.194/.379/.573 with two home runs, one double and six RBI.

Finally, per Tim Healey of Newsday, the Mets taxi squad in Philly will consist of: LHP David Peterson, who is slated to start on Saturday, RHP Jose Butto, LHP Nate Fisher and LHP Rob Zastryzny.

The post Mets Activate Sánchez, Plummer Clears Waivers appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

In this weekly feature for MMO, I’m going to look back at the previous week’s games and share some interesting data and information that I’ve collected through various websites such as Baseball-Reference, FanGraphs, and Baseball Savant. It’ll be a mixture of facts, stats, analytics, and general analysis.

Let’s get into the seven days between May 29 and June 4.

Sunday, May 29, 2022

Phillies vs. Mets

Nick Plummer hit a game-tying, solo home run in the bottom of the ninth off Corey Knebel for his first career hit. Plummer became the 14th Mets player to hit a home run for his first major league hit and the first since Jeremy Hefner did so exactly ten years ago.

Plummer’s home run had an exit velocity of 112.8 mph. That’s the second-hardest hit home run by a Met this season, behind only Pete Alonso (113.7 mph on May 19).

The Mets scored three runs off Zack Wheeler in the first inning. Prior to this start, Wheeler had not surrendered a first-inning run in his previous eight starts in 2022.

Monday, May 30, 2022

Nationals vs. Mets

Nick Plummer went 3-for-4 with a double, home run and 4 RBI in the Mets’ 13-5 win. Plummer became the first Met to homer in his each of his first two career starts.

Playing in his fifth career game, Plummer became just the third Met to record 3 or more hits and 4 or more RBI within his first five big league games, joining Mike Jacobs (2005) and Steven Matz (2015).

Pete Alonso’s solo home run in the eighth was his 13th homer of the season, and the 119th of his career. That broke a tie with Ed Kranepool and gave Alonso sole possession of the 12th-most homers in franchise history.

Tuesday, May 31, 2022

Nationals vs. Mets

Mark Canha went 4-for-5 with a double and 2 RBI out of the leadoff spot in the Mets’ 10-0 win. Canha became the first Mets’ leadoff hitter with 4+ hits and 2+ RBI since Amed Rosario on August 16, 2018 in the first game of a doubleheader against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Wednesday, June 1, 2022

Nationals vs. Mets

The Mets shut out the Nationals by a score of 5-0. It was their ninth shutout of the season in their 52nd game. That tied the 1988 club for the most shutouts in their first 52 games of a season.

Tomás Nido went 4-for-4 with a double and three RBI in the Mets’ win. All four of his hits had an exit velocity over 98 mph. It was just the fourth time in the Statcast era (since 2015) that a Mets hitter recorded four hits that each had an exit velocity of 98+ mph. Juan Lagares (2015), Yoenis Céspedes (2017), and Pete Alonso (2019) are the others.

Francisco Lindor drove in a run in his 10th consecutive game with his sac-fly to center in the seventh inning. Lindor joined Mike Piazza (twice) as the only two Mets to drive in a run in at least 10 straight games. Piazza owns the franchise record with 15 games (2000).

Thursday, June 2, 2022

Mets vs. Dodgers

The Mets suffered their first shutout loss of the season in their 53rd game of the season. The club’s 52 games without being shut out was the fourth-longest streak in club history. The longest streak belongs to the 1986 Mets who were shut out in their 86th game of the season.

Friday, June 3, 2022

Mets vs. Dodgers

Pete Alonso homered in the top of the seventh for his 14th blast of the season. It was career No. 120 for Alonso, which tied him with Edgardo Alfonzo for the 11th-most home runs in franchise history.

Alonso’s solo homer came on the first pitch of his at-bat in the seventh. It was the 28th home run of Alonso’s career that he hit on the first pitch. Since pitch count tracking began in 1988, only three Mets have hit 28 or more homers on the first pitch: David Wright (32), Mike Piazza (28), and Alonso (28).

Saturday, June 4, 2022

Mets vs. Dodgers

Pete Alonso hit two home runs in the Mets’ 9-4 win. Alonso tied Kevin McReynolds for the 10th-most homers in Mets history.

With five RBIs in the win, Pete Alonso reached the 50-RBI mark, becoming the first Met to drive in 50 runs in the club’s first 55 games of a season.

Colin Holderman struck out Mookie Betts in the fourth for his 14th strikeout of the season. In nine appearances, Holderman has 14 strikeouts to just one walk. He’s the first Mets pitcher to strike out at least 14 while allowing no more than one walk in his first nine big league games.

The nine runs the Mets scored were the most runs they’ve scored against the Los Angeles Dodgers on the road since August 24, 2014 (11 runs).

Pete Alonso drove in his 300th career run. Since 2019, he’s the only player with 100+ home runs and 300+ RBI.

The post Mets by the Numbers: Alonso Reaches the Top 10 appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Photo by Roberto Carlo

Nick Plummer is making the most of his opportunity. Promoted to the big league club after an injury to reserve outfielder Travis Jankowski, and pressed into regular duty after Brandon Nimmo was forced to the bench with a (hopefully) minor wrist ailment, Plummer is well on his way to achieving cult status in Flushing.

One night after hitting a game-tying home run in the ninth inning off Phillies closer Corey Knebel, Plummer stayed hot. He collected three hits during Monday’s Memorial Day matchup with the Nationals, including a double, a home run, four RBIs and two runs.

After the Mets fell behind 3-0 early, Plummer pulled them even in the second inning, lashing a 100.8 mph line-drive to left-center field that went for a double and scored Mark Canha. Plummer would later come around to score the go-ahead run on a single by the red-hot Luis Guillorme in a game the Mets would never trail again.

Plummer would use the opposite field to similar effect in his next at-bat, launching a three-run homer to left field off of Nats’ reliever Austin Voth. The homer traveled 383 feet and had an exit velocity of 100.7 mph. It made Plummer the first player in team history to homer in each of his first two major league starts. In his final plate appearance of the night, Plummer lined a 93.5 mph single in front of Victor Robles in center field, showing off the short, quick stroke that Mets fans have come to enjoy during his brief tenure.

Gary Cohen, “Makes sense that a guy named Plummer would have success in Flushing.”

pic.twitter.com/If78VyVfpD

— Metsmerized Online (@Metsmerized) May 31, 2022

Plummer will be an interesting name to watch moving forward. The Mets signed the left-handed hitter to a major league contract on November 24 despite the fact that he had yet to appear in a big-league game. Though he arrived with little fanfare to a team that added several big names and all-star talents in the offseason, Plummer has already showed off the tools that made him the 23rd overall pick of the 2015 amateur draft by the St. Louis Cardinals.

After struggling immensely for the first few years of his professional career, Plummer blossomed in 2021, putting up a .280/.415/.479 slash-line between Double-A and Triple-A for the Cardinals. In his brief time with the Mets, Plummer has looked extremely comfortable both at the dish and defensively in left field. The Mets, who employ the oldest roster in major league baseball, have to feel better about their outfield depth after watching Plummer, still just 25 years old, put on a show at Citi Field over the past two nights.

Plummer’s youth and athleticism–he played quarterback in high school–are useful attributes for a roster like the Mets’. And while Jankowski has been a factor off the bench for the Mets, putting his speed, in particular, to good use, he has shown that he is not much of a power threat at the plate. In fact, in just two days, Plummer has racked up two more extra-base hits than Jankowski has all season.

Buck Showalter called Plummer’s recent stretch “special,” before indicating that he is particularly happy at Plummer’s success given the boost in morale that comes from promoting within.

Plummer described the last couple of nights at Citi Field as “a whole bunch of fun” after Monday’s game before crediting his teammates for his early success and expressing gratitude to the Flushing faithful for their support. Plummer said there are “a lot of really good pieces” on the roster, which enticed him to join the club in the offseason.

On a first-place team with a lot of really good pieces, Nick Plummer is doing all he can to show that he, himself, is a pretty darn good one.

The post Nick Plummer Has Had A “Special” Few Days appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Good morning, Mets fans!

Former Mets manager Mickey Callaway was fired by Acereros de Monclova of the Mexican League just 33 games into his tenure. The team has just a 16-17 record and sports a team ERA of 6.78. Callaway remains on MLB’s ineligible list through at least 2022 after the league office concluded that he had violated its policies on harassment.

Latest Mets News

The Mets extended their winning streak to a season-high four games, routing the Nationals 13-5. Washington jumped out to a 3-0 lead against David Peterson, but the Mets fired back with 12 runs over the next four innings. Starling Marte and Nick Plummer both homered and drove in four, Francisco Lindor collected three hits and drove in a run for the eighth straight game, and Pete Alonso added his 13th homer of the year. The Mets are now 33-17 on the year and lead the second-place Braves by 9.5 games.

Righties Michel Otañez and Bryce Montes De Oca have both been promoted to Triple-A Syracuse. Otañez has pitched to a sparkling 1.80 ERA with six saves and 20 strikeouts in 15 innings (12.0 K/9) for Binghamton. Montes De Oca has picked up three saves while turning in a 3.31 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 16.1 innings (13.2 K/9). Both hurlers have touched 102 miles per hour this year.

Latest MLB News

The Cubs placed outfielder Seiya Suzuki and former-Met infielder, Jonathan Villar, on the injured list. Suzuki suffered a left ring finger sprain while Villar suffered a mouth injury during a workout. Pitchers Anderson Espinoza, Matt Swarmer, and Brandon Hughes were recalled along with outfielder Nelson Velàzquez, while ex-Met Robert Gsellman was designated for assignment. The Cubs also promoted former-Met prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong to High-A South Bend.

The Royals placed Zack Greinke on the IL with a forearm strain along with fellow pitchers Matt Peacock and Gabe Speier. Outfielder Kyle Isbel was reinstated from his injury, and pitchers Arodys Vizcaino, Jose Cuas, and Foster Griffin were summoned to the big-league roster.

The Brewers were dealt a big blow as they placed righty Brandon Woodruff on the IL with a sprained right ankle. The two-time All-Star was off to a bit of a rocky start, but his peripherals suggested a more encouraging picture. Last season, Woodruff finished fifth in NL Cy Young voting. Right-hander Peter Strzelecki was called up to take his place.

Marlins outfielder Jesús Sánchez hit the longest home run of the season on Monday afternoon in Colorado. The ball traveled 496 feet and landed by the Silver Bullet Bar that sits beyond the stands in the upper deck in right field.

Latest on MMO

Alexis Farinacci writes about Nick Plummer’s memorable first MLB hit.

Daniel M. breaks down Mike Vasil’s debut in Brooklyn in the latest Mets Minors recap.

On This Date in Mets History

1964: The Mets are swept in a doubleheader by the Giants which takes an MLB-record nine hours and 52 minutes to complete. Juan Marichal throws a complete game in the opener, but the nightcap goes 23 innings and last seven hours and 23 minutes, with the Giants taking an 8-6 victory.

Birthdays: Dwight Bernard (70), Joe Orsulak (60), Gerson Bautista (27)

Let’s go Mets!

The post Morning Briefing: Mickey Callaway Fired By Mexican League Team appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Photo by Roberto Carlo

Mets rookie Nick Plummer put an exclamation point on his first major league start on Sunday against the Phillies. Going into the ninth inning, Plummer was 0-for-3 and looking for his first big league hit. The Mets were down by one and needed a big ninth inning.

Down by one, the rookie Plummer came up to the plate in a big spot and he delivered in glorious fashion, blasting a solo home run, his first career hit and first career home run as the Mets tied the game 4-4.

With his home run Sunday night, Plummer now has a major league batting average and OPS, hitting .200 with a 1.000 OPS

Prior to being called up to New York, Plummer was with Triple-A Syracuse where he was batting .250/.313/.511, with a .824 OP

Mets manager Buck Showalter spoke to the media on Plummer’s ninth-inning game tying home run, saying he was the Mets’ best option in the ninth.

“Nobody pushes harder than he (Plummer) does,” said Showalter. “He’s got so much ‘want to’ that sometimes it gets in the way. He’s got a good track-record and one we are going to trust. He’s as good a professional that you could want on your club.”

Eduardo Escobar, who hit the game-winning walk-off hit also spoke about Plummer’s first career home run.

“I’m so happy for the kid, man,” said Escobar, who stated the home run was in unbelievable fashion and that hopefully Plummer will have more ahead.

Plummer rounded out post-game interviews and spoke on the excitement of his MLB debut and first big league hit.

“It was cool man; just to be in there and start… It’s been cool to get out there with the guys, and ultimately get the win… It was “pretty surreal, no words,” said Plummer.

Plummer also said he did get his home run ball back and that the exchange was made for it.

The post Nick Plummer Collects Memorable First Major League Hit appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

Good morning, Mets fans!

The Mets capped off their first sweep of the year Sunday night by walking off the Phillies in 10 innings. Eduardo Escobar drove in Starling Marte with a single for the game-winning run, after Nick Plummer tied the game in the ninth with his first big-league home run. The Mets are now 32-17 on the year and hold an 8.5-game lead over the second-place Braves.

The Nationals come to Citi Field for a three-game set tonight, David Peterson (2-0, 2.16 ERA) will face off against Erick Fedde (3-3, 3.55 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 pm EST.

Latest Mets News

The Mets acquired infielder JT Riddle from the Cincinnati Reds. The left-handed-hitting Riddle only appeared in two games in Cincinnati and was hitting just .206 with three homers for Triple-A Louisville. He will report to Syracuse and won’t be on the 40-man roster.

Drew Smith exited the seventh inning of Sunday’s game after taking a comebacker off his pitching hand, leaving him with a dislocated pinky. X-rays came back negative for a fracture, and he is considered day-to-day.

Latest MLB News

Left-hander Ethan Small has been called up by the Brewers. The southpaw was drafted 28th overall by the club in 2019 out of Mississippi State and since then has pitched to a 1.78 ERA with 177 strikeouts in 136.2 minor-league innings.

Tim Anderson is heading to the injured list after suffering a groin strain on Sunday. The shortstop fell to the ground after fielding a grounder and had to be helped off the field.

Latest on MMO

James Villani writes about Trevor Williams’ success during his time with the Mets.

Daniel M. recaps how the Mets’ minor-league affiliates performed on Saturday.

Andrew Steele-Davis writes about Luis Guillorme’s recent hot streak

Alex Horowitz examines Francisco Lindor’s hot stretch from the past week.

On This Date in Mets History

2013: The Mets complete a four-game Subway Series sweep of the Yankees with a 3-1 win. Dillon Gee gets the win, striking out a career-high 12 batters in 7.1 innings. It’s the first time the Mets have swept the Yankees in a season series.

Birthdays: Fernando Salas (37), Zack Wheeler (32)

Let’s go Mets!

The post Morning Briefing: Mets Walk Off Philles To Complete Sweep appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Mets (32-17) completed their three-game set with division-rival Philadelphia Phillies (21-27) on Sunday night at Citi Field. The Mets were on the hunt for their first sweep of the season. After a late blown lead, Nick Plummer played hero and Eduardo Escobar finished the game off with his defense and bat to secure an extra-innings victory. The 5-4 win secured New York’s first sweep of the season.

The Mets got the scoring going early. Luis Guillorme continued his insane stretch with a lead-off double. Starling Marte then singled, and Francisco Lindor followed that up with a fielder’s choice. Lindor’s ground ball not only drove in Guillorme, but also resulted in Marte being safe at second thanks to a fielding error courtesy of Johan Camargo.

Pete Alonso registered a bloop hit which loaded the bases with no outs for Escobar. Escobar grounded into a fielder’s choice which brought home another run. Mark Canha then grounded out to third base to score the third Mets’ run of the inning.

The Phillies tried to bounce back in the third inning. They loaded the bases with no outs but only got one run via a double-play ground out. Philadelphia, however, did inflate Chris Bassitt‘s pitch count all the way to 63.

Bassitt’s day ended up coming to a close after six extremely strong innings. He only allowed the one run on two hits. He walked three but struck out seven over his 100 pitches thrown. Bassitt retired the last 10 batters he faced. A nice bounce-back outing after his struggles last time out.

Drew Smith relieved Bassitt in the seventh inning. He got the first two outs before deflecting a comebacker with his bare hand which got through for a hit. He left the game with a pinky finger injury. Joely Rodríguez came in and got the third out by throwing only one pitch.

Rodríguez also got two outs in the eighth inning. However, he walked two before being relieved by Adam Ottavino. Ottavino gave up a two-strike, three-run home run to Nick Castellanos. The Mets now trailed 4-3 headed to the bottom of the eighth.

Nick Plummer’s first big-league homer couldn’t have come at a better time. pic.twitter.com/HLM5wff7wB

— Metsmerized Online (@Metsmerized) May 30, 2022

Nick Plummer, in his first career start, hit the first pitch he saw from Corey Knebel into the second deck of right field. The ballgame was tied just like that. The solo shot went 389 feet at 112.8 MPH off the bat. The home run was the first time a Met has registered their first career home run in the ninth inning or later since 2006.

🤯🤯🤯 @escobardelapica pic.twitter.com/axAfPXQ3Wp

— New York Mets (@Mets) May 30, 2022

The game went to extras innings where Edwin Díaz got the Mets to the bottom of the tenth inning tied. In the top half of the inning, Escobar made an absurd over-the-railing snag and then Díaz struck out Roman Quinn to end the half inning.

Eduardo Escobar came up clutch and drove in the free runner with a line drive to right field with one out. First, it was his defense in the top of the inning, then his bat in the bottom half. He had a fantastic 10th inning.

With the win, New York is on pace for 106 wins. They improve their NL East lead to 8.5 games and have separated themselves by 10.5 over Philadelphia.

Photo by Ed Delany of MMO

Player of the Game: Nick Plummer

It was Nick Plummer’s first career MLB start. The outfielder, who was signed in the offseason, didn’t start the game off too hot. He struck out twice and read a ball incorrectly in left field that led to a third inning Phillies’ run. Well, in the ninth inning, all was forgiven as he went 389 feet to right field to tie the ballgame.

The 25-year old will surely never forget not only his first career MLB hit, but also his first career MLB homer at such an important juncture.

On Deck

The Mets will kick off their last home series before they go to the West Coast for a tough test. First, they’ll take on the Washington Nationals at Citi Field in a three-game set. The 7:10 P.M. ET first pitch tomorrow is slated to feature Erick Fedde (3.55 ERA) versus David Peterson (2.16 ERA).

The post Late Game Heroics Strike Again In Mets’ 5-4 Win Over Phillies appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Photo by Ed Delany, MMO

Triple-A Recap

Syracuse Mets (6-11) 4, Worcester Red Sox (10-8) 2  Box Score

• Nick Plummer CF: 2-for-4, R, HR, 3 RBI, K, .300/.400/.600
• Mark Vientos 3B: 1-for-4, 3B, 2 K, .160/.232/.320
• Travis Blankenhorn 2B: 1-for-4, R, 2B, 2 K, .191/.220/.426

The Mets didn’t have a ton going on offense in Sunday’s game, but they got the big hit when they needed it. Plummer was the one who came through for them with his go-ahead three-run homer to right field in the eighth inning. He hasn’t played much yet this season with the time he’s spent on the major league taxi squad, but Plummer has looked very strong through his first six games with Syracuse. Used at all three outfield positions a year ago, it is interesting to note that he has only played center field this season.

Vientos had a .978 OPS during his cup of coffee with Syracuse last year, so it is a bit of a surprise to see him struggle so mightily through the first couple of weeks of 2022. Four of his eight hits have gone for extra bases, so the power is still there, but his 34% K% is very high. The other top-hitting prospects in Syracuse – Khalil Lee and Carlos Cortes – have experienced similar struggles this season.

• LHP Mike Montgomery (0-2, 2.65 ERA) 5.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, ER, 4 K
• RHP Rob Zastryzny (0-1, 2.45 ERA) 2.0 IP, BB, 4 K
• LHP Alex Claudio (W, 1-0, 1.13 ERA) 2.0 IP, BB, K

Syracuse has had significant pitching woes early in the 2022 season, but these three pitchers have not been responsible for those struggles. Montgomery has been consistently good through his first four starts, giving up no more than two earned runs in any single start. His 16:1 K: BB ratio over 17.0 innings pitched is also outstanding. Claudio has only given up one earned run over his first eight innings this season.

Double-A Recap

Portland Sea Dogs (9-6) 13, Binghamton Rumble Ponies (4-10) 5  Box Score

• Ronny Mauricio SS: 2-for-4, R, 2B, RBI, K, .320/.358/.580
• Brett Baty LF: 0-for-3, R, 2 BB, K, .354/.415/.542
• Francisco Álvarez C: 0-for-4, 2 K, .289/.378/.711

It’s a rare sight to look at a Binghamton box score and see that both Baty and Álvarez were hitless, but Sunday was one of those unusual days. Mauricio, however, picked up the slack for his fellow top prospects with a multi-hit game of his own. Through the first 14 games of the season, the three top prospects are among the top 13 hitters in the Eastern League in terms of OPS. MMO’s Josh Finkelstein noted Ronny Mauricio’s debut on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 prospects list.

It almost seems hypercritical to say anything negative about a player with an OPS over 1.000 and the youngest player in the league. Still, Álvarez has been uncharacteristically strikeout-prone over the past few games. He has a 31.1 K% for the season, well above his 22.3% from last year. Both Àlvarez and Mauricio were removed for pinch hitters in the eighth inning; the Rumble Ponies gave no reason for their removal, but it does not appear injury-related.

• RHP Mitch Ragan (L, 0-1, 12.96 ERA) 0.2 IP, 5 H, 7 ER, BB, K
• RHP Justin Lasko (0-0, 10.13 ERA) 4.0 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, BB, 5 K
• RHP Michel Otanez (0-1, 0.00 ERA) 1.0 IP, H

It was a start to forget for Ragan, against whom more at bats ended in home runs (3) than outs (2). He hadn’t been dominant early in the season, but this start ballooned his ERA from a sour 5.87 to an abysmal 12.96. Lasko wasn’t much better in relief (although he did make it from the second through the fourth inning unscathed), and the score was out of hand by the fifth inning. However, one positive from this pitching performance is that Otanez continues to look strong and displays much better control in relief than last year. It has only been five appearances, but a 1.93 BB/9 was a dramatic improvement from his 9.15 BB/9 a year ago.

High-A Recap

Hudson Valley Renegades (8-7) 3, Brooklyn Cyclones (8-7) 0  Box Score

• Nic Gaddis 3B: 1-for-3, BB, E, .152/.293/.212
• Jaylen Palmer DH: 0-for-2, K, HBP, .161/.297/.226
• Tanner Murphy LF: 1-for-2, 2B, BB, K, .273/.308/.545

There was nothing positive about the Cyclones’ offensive performance on Sunday. They recorded just two hits on the day and were 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. Palmer improved his strikeout numbers a bit last season, especially during his time with St. Lucie, but a 48.6% K% through his first ten games is certainly not conducive to success for the high-upside prospect. However, offensive struggles early this season are not limited to just Palmer. Instead, the Cyclones rank dead last in the South Atlantic League with a .580 team OPS.

• RHP Daison Acosta (L, 0-2, 12.00 ERA) 1.0 IP, H, ER, BB, K
• RHP Garrison Bryant (1-0, 2.79 ERA) 4.0 IP, 4 H, ER, BB, 3 K
• RHP Justin Courtney (1-0, 2.70 ERA) 1.1 IP, H, 2 K

Acosta lasted just one inning in his third start of the season. He is coming back from Tommy John surgery and threw 56 pitches in his last outing, so seeing him leaving this start after throwing just 16 pitches is a bit concerning. Following Acosta’s outing, Bryant pitched well in relief. Courtney has looked excellent in his first full season in the Mets organization. He has given up just two earned runs in 6.2 innings pitched and has a 13.5 K/9.

Low-A Recap

Jupiter Hammerheads (8-7) 2, St. Lucie Mets (9-6) 1  Box Score

• Stanley Consuegra CF: 2-for-4, 2B, K, .264/.316/.340
• Raul Beracierta DH: 2-for-4, K, .259/.286/.296
• Shervyen Newton SS: 1-for-4, 2B, RBI, K, 2 E, .283/.358/.457

The Mets couldn’t get anything going offensively in Sunday’s game. They had just seven hits and couldn’t take advantage of their limited chances, with Newton’s RBI double in the eighth inning being their lone hit with runners in scoring position out of seven at bats. Consuegra is one of the more exciting prospects on this St. Lucie team, but he has struggled a bit with strikeouts: he has recorded a 35.1% K% through the first 13 games of the season. Alex Ramirez was not in the lineup for Sunday’s game.

• RHP Dominic Hamel (0-0, 4.66 ERA) 1.0 IP, H, 2 K
• RHP Carson Seymour (1-0, 0.00 ERA) 4.0 IP, 3 H, BB, 2 K
• RHP Joshua Cornielly (L, 0-1, 5.06 ERA) 1.0 IP, H, 3 BB, K

Hamel made his third start of the season but was removed after one scoreless, 14-pitch inning. It is unclear if this was because he was being used as an opener for Seymour or if the removal was injury-related. He had gone at least four innings in his first two starts of the season. Seymour has thrown nine scoreless innings and has held opponents to a .335 OPS this season.

The post Mets Minors Recap: Ronny Mauricio Another Two Hits In Loss appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Photo by Ed Delany of MMO

The Mets minor league season kicked off last week with most of the Mets top prospects in action. Let’s take a look at how some of them performed.

Week In Review

All four Mets affiliates kicked off their 2022 campaigns this past week. Only one of their affiliates finished over .500 last season, St. Lucie at 60-55, as all four teams work towards more success this time around.

Triple-A Syracuse is off to a rough start to their season at 1-4. According to team manager Kevin Boles, Khalil Lee has missed the first four games of their season with travel issues. Offensively, the team is struggling. They’ve been missing Lee, Nick Plummer being on the MLB practice squad, and Travis Jankowski being promoted to the Opening Day roster. Only Travis Blankenhorn and Daniel Palka own an OPS over .750 in the first five games.

Double-A Binghamton is off to a 1-2 start despite three homers from Francisco Álvarez and Brett Baty in the first three games. Àlvarez is 5-for 9 with two homers and two doubles to start the season to go along with Brett Baty’s 5-for-14 with a homer and a double. Ronny Mauricio is also off to a nice start hitting .286 in the first three games.

Starting pitching, however, has not been the team’s strong suit. Jose Butto gave four scoreless innings in his first start, but Alex Valverde and Marcel Renteria gave up six and eight runs in their starts respectively.

High-A Brooklyn, much like Binghamton, is also 1-2 to start. Outfielder Rowdey Jordan is off to the best start of anyone on the team, going 3-for-8 with a double, triple, and a walk to start his campaign.

As a whole, however, the team has an .456 OPS to start, the worst of any High-A team so far this season. The starting pitching has been stellar, with only two runs allowed so far in 11 innings. Oscar Rojas and Jose Chacin threw scoreless starts with one hit allowed their first times out. Junior Santos has allowed three runs in two innings with four walks and no strikeouts.

Lastly, Low-A St. Lucie is 2-1 on the back of strong starting pitching. Keyshawn Askew and Calvin Ziegler were solid in their first starts of the season, but 2021 8th round pick Mike Vasil stole the show on night two. Vasil struck out six in four shutout innings, hitting 97 MPH according to Metsmerized’s Mike Mayer.

Offensively, the team is off to a strong start. Alex Ramirez picked up right where he left off, now 6-for-13 to start the year. Shervyen Newton‘s 1.212 OPS is the best on the team, thanks to a pair of doubles and walks in his first three games. Justin Guerrera and Carlos Dominguez both own an OPS over 1.000 as well. Dominguez has the team’s only long ball so far.

Organizational Leaders

AVG- Francisco Álvarez .556 (BNG)

OPS- Francisco Álvarez 2.000 (BNG)

HR- Francisco Álvarez 2 (BNG),

SP ERA- 6 Players, 0.00: Mike Montgomery (SYR), Jose Butto (BNG), Jose Chacin (BRK), Oscar Rojas (BRK), Mike Vasil (STL), Keyshawn Askew (STL)

Photo by Ed Delany of MMO

Mets Minors News

Khalil Lee was absent from the first four games of the season for Syracuse following a travel issue from Florida to New York and then subsequent days to ramp up for the beginning of the season. Last season, Lee, 23, impressed in Syracuse, is the Mets Minors’ 8th ranked prospect.

Jordan Yamamoto was designated for assignment earlier in the week and cleared waivers, and was assigned to Syracuse, according to MetsMerized’s John Flanigan. Yamamoto was DFA to clear room on the 40-Man before Opening Day.

Yennsy Diaz was also designated for assignment following the Mets’ acquisition of Adonis Medina from Pittsburgh. Diaz has not appeared in a game so far this season for any affiliate of the Mets.

Players of the Week

Offensive: Binghamton C Francisco Álvarez

This one was relatively easy. Francisco’s numbers speak for themselves as he starts his 2022 season raging hot. As if hitting two homers in Hartford was not impressive enough, one went opposite field, showing how powerful he is. Álvarez entered the year as a consensus Top-10 prospect in baseball, and he is going to make a push for the top of the board as several other top-10 names graduate to the big league level to begin 2022.

Pitcher: St. Lucie SP Mike Vasil

Vasil’s strong start made it easy to tab him with this week’s honor. The former Virginia Commodore struck out six over four scoreless innings in his 2022 debut, building on successful innings in his shortened 2021 campaign with the FCL team. The 2021 8th round selection hit 97 with his fastball and has seemingly started to hit a new stride following his arm injury in his senior year of high school and then a shortened 2020 season.

Upcoming Schedule

Syracuse: @ Columbus April 12-17

Binghamton: vs Bowie April 12-17

Brooklyn: vs Jersey Shore April 12-17

St. Lucie: vs Clearwater April 12-17

The post Mets Minors Weekly Report: Álvarez Picks Up Where He Left Off appeared first on Metsmerized Online.

Francisco Álvarez Photo by Ed Delany of MMO

The Mets played a sim game at 11 a.m. on Monday at Clover Park, with the bulk of the pitchers being big leaguers. The position players on the lineup card were all minor leaguers, but guys like Pete Alonso and James McCann also took multiple at-bats.

Alonso and McCann had good days at the plate, though Francisco Álvarez stood out again. The 20-year-old catcher prospect had two doubles in the game, both to right field. His manager Buck Showalter talked about how impressed he was with the Mets’ top prospects, saying Álvarez has been “as advertised” in big league camp. Both doubles for Álvarez came off right-hander Jose Rodriguez.

Mets top prospect Francisco Álvarez with his second double of the game. pic.twitter.com/KNDVrxgnKR

— Mike Mayer (@mikemayer22) March 28, 2022

Other notable prospects in the game include Mark Vientos, Ronny Mauricio, Khalil Lee, Nick Plummer, Jake Mangum, and Wilmer Reyes.

Another important note from the sim game was fellow Mets catcher McCann swinging the bat well as he tries to come back from a back issue. The veteran had three hits in the game, including two in one inning (sim game rules!). McCann didn’t run out his hits and did have a pinch runner take over for him on the hits.

Showalter said following the sim game action that McCann was good-to-go for Tuesday night’s game at the Marlins. It will be an important second season for the New York catcher, as MMO’s Thomas Hall wrote about the areas McCann needs to improve on to be successful in 2022.

Pete Alonso just hit a piss missile past Mark Vientos at third base. pic.twitter.com/zH6pJcrl9H

— Mike Mayer (@mikemayer22) March 28, 2022

Alonso did what Alonso does; he had a couple of rockets in the game and again had two hits in one inning against Trevor Williams. Both were doubles, one down the left field line and one down the right field line.

Most of the Mets’ top bullpen arms worked in the game after Williams and Rodriguez threw their innings. Seth Lugo, Trevor May, and Edwin Diaz looked good in their scoreless innings. Miguel Castro gave up an RBI single to minor leaguer Quinn Brodey. Right-hander Yennsy Diaz pitched an inning as well.

Photo by Ed Delany of MMO

Lugo was particularly impressive, with two strikeouts in his inning of work. It was a scoreless inning with one strikeout in his only official outing this spring. Minor leaguers Junior Santos and Josh Walker finished off the game with an inning each. Walker got five outs in his inning because he got the first three outs so quickly.

The Mets will be back in Grapefruit League action on Tuesday night against the Marlins in Jupiter at 6:40 p.m., with Chris Bassitt getting the start.

The post Francisco Álvarez Continues Impressive Spring In Sim Game appeared first on Metsmerized Online.