Wuilmer Becerra (Photo by Michael Baron)
Baseball America has named Mets prospect Wuilmer Becerra, of the Kingsport Mets, the #18 best player in the Appalachian League following the 2014 season. The incredibly young outfielder might not be at the tip of anyone’s tongue, but he was the final piece we received in the R.A. Dickey deal a few years ago.
In Kingsport this season he batted .300, with seven home runs, 29 RBI and a .469 Slugging Percentage. Obviously when you’re discussing performance at Kingsport it’s hard to develop any concrete conclusions. These are generally some of the youngest players in the system and Becerra is no different. He hasn’t even reached his 20th birthday yet, that comes on October 1st.
At the time of the Dickey trade, Noah Syndergaard was regarded by many as the secondary component with Travis d’Arnaud being the centerpiece. Becerra almost got lost in the shuffle with casual fans, but now with two years of rookie ball under his belt it looks like he’s finally making a name for himself.
Baseball America writes:
Becerra made developmental strides this summer as his tools began to impact games. He has a gap-to-gap approach and above-average raw power, with strength and leverage in his righthanded stroke. He finished third in the league in home runs. His plate discipline and strike zone awareness will need to improve, as most of his strikeouts came out of the zone. His swing has length from a deep load and Becerra’s stride was inconsistent. The athletic Becerra moves well for his size and is at least an average runner out of the box who is an above-average runner underway.
They’re not exactly calling him the next Mike Trout but you can see why people at the lowest levels of the Mets minor league organization are excited about this kid. He plays a solid outfield and projects as a right fielder according to Baseball America.
Baseball America’s Clint Longenecker also added that many of the Mets’ other young position players are too strikeout prone, while the some of pitching prospects struggled with control.
Outfielder Ivan Wilson led the league in home runs and has a chance to remain in center field. He is a very athletic player with a great body that has lots of strength. But he struck out in nearly half of his PA (46.9%). There is no way to produce offensively with that strikeout rate at the upper levels.
Shortstop Luis Guillorme has terrific hands that are lightning quick. His average arm and below-average speed probably fit best at second base in the long run. But his hands are special.
It’s always fun to look into the future. Many of these players will never see AA, let alone AAA or the majors, but for Becerra it seems like scouts and baseball people are taking notice. Always a good thing.
