New York Mets top 10 prospects for 2019
The first top 10 prospect list on the new site happens to be the New York Mets, so bear with me with the new format!
System Overview
Typically known for having 1-2 quality players and pushing them much too hard to the point that the players fizzled out quickly, the New York Mets had seen their farm system fall to one of the worst in the game just 2-3 years ago. While new General Manager Brody Van Wagenen has traded a few players already, former GM Sandy Alderson helped to build up the farm system over the last few seasons with quality drafts of college arms and high-upside high school bats while also remaining active in the international market. The combination has led to a system that would have likely been in the 10-15 range entering the offseason but will be lower due to trades now. We will examine the top 10, starting with one player outside of the top 10 who was either a draft pick or international signee in 2018.
Newcomer to watch: Francisco Alvarez, C
Birthday: 11/19/01 (17)
2018 level(s) played: none
2018 stats: none
The New York Mets dropped $2.9 million on Venezuelan Francisco Alvarez to key their 2018-2019 international free agent class. While the track record of teenage catchers is not tremendously great, Alvarez has a level of maturity, work ethic, and raw tools that you just don’t see very often in the international free agent class in July.
Already known for his huge hands and forearms, Alvarez generates incredible power off the bat. His biggest question will be his ability to stick behind the plate, but he does have a very strong arm, so he could profile more than just at first base if he doesn’t work behind the plate.
While he may take a while to get there, Alvarez should be fun for New York Mets fans to follow.
10. Shervyen Newton, IF
Birthday: 4/24/1999 (19)
2018 level(s) played: advanced rookie Kingsport
2018 stats: .280/.408/.449, 56 G, 266 PA, 16 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 4 SB, 17.3% BB, 31.6% K
The Mets signed Shervyen Newton out of the Netherlands, having trained in Curacao where many future big leaguers have hailed. After two seasons in the Dominican, Mets fans finally got a chance to see Newton stateside, and he did not disappoint.
Standing 6’4″ and listed at a gangly 180 pounds, it’s quite feasible that Newton’s already added another 15 pounds to that listed weight, and he’s got a frame to add another 15-30 pounds without hurting his ability to be an excellent defender on the left side of the infield. He does
Newton is a switch-hitter, and his natural power certainly rang true last season as he pounded the gaps. He projects with big power, but his long arms and legs could lead to some concern with strikeouts. He’ll get his first taste of
9. Simeon Woods-Richardson, RHP
Birthday: 9/27/2000 (18)
2018 level(s) played: GCL Mets, advanced rookie Kingsport
2018 stats: 1-0, 7 G, 4 GS, 1 SV, 17 1/3 IP, 1.56
One of the youngest players in the 2018 draft, Simeon Woods-Richardson was also one of the most “finished” players in the draft this past June, already filled out to his present 6’3″ and 210 pounds. He seemed to hit that finishing point between his junior and senior year, adding velocity and seeing his stock surge, with the New York Mets selecting him in the 2nd round.
“SWR” has a complete build, without a lot of projection, but with his current stuff, there’s not much more that’s really needed to succeed, beyond polishing what’s already there. Woods-Richardson works with a fastball that comes over the top and peaks at 96-97, sitting 93-94 with tremendous spin rate, especially up in the zone and arm side.
Simeon has shown the ability to spin a sharp 12-6 curve and a fading change that could be a devastating 3-pitch mix with work on sequencing and the blessings of health as he works his way up the chain.
He very well could open the 2019 season in full-season ball in the New York Mets system.
8. Franklyn Kilome, RHP
Birthday: 6/25/1995 (23)
2018 level(s) played: AA Reading, AA Binghamton
2018 stats: 4-9, 26 GS, 140 IP, 4.18
One of the great markets in Latin America is finding pitchers who develop late and show up with incredible raw stuff at 18 after seeing so many of the top Latin American arms reach deals long before they reach the age of signing at 16. Franklyn Kilome is the type of guy you can find in that market.
Kilome was signed by the Phillies out of the Dominican just before he turned 18, standing 6’6″ and lanky when he was signed. He’s added weight and seen his stuff develop quickly as he’s worked his way up the Phillies system before being traded to the New York Mets last summer in a deal that sent Asdrubal Cabrera to Philly.
Kilome works up to 96-98 with his fastball, but he typically sits more in the 93-95 range and uses his long legs and arms to get a good push to the plate and attack the upper part of the zone. When it’s on, his high-spin curve is one of the most dominating secondary pitches in all the minor leagues. He also offers a slider and a change that are fringe-average. His extreme length leads to struggles with his delivery, and that will be Kilome’s work to figure out.
He is out with Tommy John in 2019, but when he returns in 2020, he will be interesting to watch, as his raw stuff could move quickly to a bullpen role, but his upside as a starter is very high.
7. Desmond Lindsay, OF
Birthday: 1/15/1997 (22)
2018 level(s) played: GCL Mets, high-A St. Lucie
2018 stats: .223/.317/.325, 90 G, 360 PA, 13 2B, 5 3B, 3 HR, 9 SB, 11.1% BB, 26.7% K
An incredibly athletic outfielder drafted in the second round in 2015, Desmond Lindsay has struggled to stay on the field since he was drafted, but when he has been on the field, he’s been tantalizing at the least and breath-taking at best.
Lindsay shows excellent instincts in the outfield, grading out with many as a plus defender after moving to the outfield after being drafted as an infielder. He has an arm in the 55-60 range that should comfortably play in center or left field – if he can stay on the field.
The 90 games that he played in 2018 represents a career high, and by no small margin. There are few with Lindsay’s athleticism and raw ability, and if he could ever stay healthy, he could become a significant impact prospect for the New York Mets.
After crushing the ball in 2018 in the Arizona Fall League, the Mets may feel that he can be sent to AA for his first taste of upper minors pitching.
6. Anthony Kay, LHP
Birthday: 3/21/1995 (23)
2018 level(s) played: low-A Columbia, high-A St. Lucie
2018 stats: 7-11, 23 GS, 122 2/3 IP, 4.26
Taken out of high school by the New York Mets in the 29th round in 2013, Anthony Kay instead chose to attend the University of Connecticut, where he developed into a first-round selection in 2016. Unfortunately, the Huskies used Kay’s arm to an extreme, and he needed Tommy John surgery before he was able to make his pro debut.
Kay made that debut in 2018, and he certainly had his moments of struggle, as one would expect, but when he was on his game, he was excellent. He utilized a plus curve with elite spin and a high spin fastball to pair with it in the low-90s, peaking at 95-96. His change was his predominant pitch in college, but it took a back seat to his curve in 2018.
With this new-found pitch came a common issue, both of someone working on a new breaking pitch and someone returning from Tommy John surgery – command consistency. Kay will likely get a shot at AA in 2019, and if he can show that consistency of command of his three pitches, he could move quickly to the New York Mets rotation.
5. David Peterson, LHP
Birthday: 9/3/1995 (23)
2018 level(s) played: low-A Columbia, high-A St. Lucie
2018 stats: 7-10, 22 GS, 128 IP, 3.16
In back-to-back seasons, the New York Mets selected left-handed collegiate starters in the first round. Other than the hand that they throw the ball with, the two could not be more different. David Peterson, the 2017 first-round selection out of Oregon, showed his impressive ability across both A-ball levels in 2018, but in a much different way than did Anthony Kay.
Peterson dwarfs Kay as Kay stands 6′ tall and a solid 215-220. Peterson is listed at 6’6″ and 240 pounds, and the height could be the rare guy who is actually an inch shorter in his listing than reality, while he is a very big guy. That size deceives, however, as Peterson is far from a power pitcher.
Working in the low-90s with his impressive four-seam, two-seam fastball combo, Peterson uses his height to get
Due to his arm slot that is just a hair under 3/4, Peterson creates a difficult angle for hitters to find the ball, and even without a big fastball, he ranks higher for me as I see him as a sure-fire big league starter for at least a time. He could potentially have a similar career to that of Andrew Miller – working to the majors as a starter and finding his home as a reliever with the capability of working multiple innings.
4. Mark Vientos, 3B
Birthday: 12/11/1999 (19)
2018 level(s) played: advanced rookie Kingsport
2018 stats: .287/.389/.489, 60 G, 262 PA, 12 2B, 11 HR, 1 SB, 14.1% BB, 16.4% K
One of the youngest players in the entire 2017 draft, Mark Vientos was potentially my second-favorite player in that year’s draft crop behind Jo Adell. Vientos went in the 2nd round to the New York Mets, and I’d wager down the line, there will be many teams kicking themselves for not making the move on him.
Vientos was a question mark with many due to his long frame and likely move off shortstop in his future clouding his value. However, multiple evaluators passed on to me that they believed Vientos to have the best pure bat in the entire 2017 prep class, and the views I got reminded me strongly of a young Manny Machado, both at the plate and in the field.
His 6’4″ frame did fill out some this season to put Vientos squarely into third base long-term, and he lost a hair in his range at third due to the added size, but it was good added weight, and that translated to his bat. In 2017, while he did hit for 18 extra base hits out of his 50 hits, a near mirror image of the 23 extra base hits out of 64 hits in 2018, most of those hits (14 of the 18) went for doubles. That added strength brought nearly a perfect 50/50 split between home runs and power in 2018.
What’s remarkable to consider is that Vientos will play the entire 2019 season as a teenager, and he has already displayed impressive power and plate discipline. The New York Mets should be in no hurry to rush Vientos. He could be a very, very special one.
3. Ronny Mauricio, SS
Birthday: 4/4/2001 (17)
2018 level(s) played: GCL Mets, advanced rookie Kingsport
2018 stats: .273/.304/.410, 57 G, 247 PA, 16 2B, 3 3B, 3 HR, 2 SB, 5.3% BB, 16.2% K
The crown jewel of the New York Mets 2017/2018 international signing class, Ronny Mauricio was fast-tracked in 2018 in his pro debut, making it all the way to the Appalachian League in his first pro season. Mauricio stands 6’4″ tall, but right now, there’s little on that frame at all to speak of, as he’s listed at roughly 165 pounds, and that could even be generous.
Fall instructs showed a stronger Mauricio already, so obviously, the New York Mets see that his frame is a certain importance to his development. However, if someone asks me about a prospect not widely on top-100 lists that could make a big leap in 2019, Mauricio is a very strong contender for that mention. He appeared at the very back end of the Baseball America top 100 list, and that’s about it for major national lists.
His list placement definitely does not indicate just how talented this young shortstop is. Mauricio is a true shortstop with incredible instincts and a 70-grade arm that makes up for an average first step by using his long legs to cover plenty of ground.
At the plate, Mauricio’s biggest knock is that he’s got such quick hands that he truly believes that he can hit anything right now, and he’s not exactly been proven wrong. He doesn’t strike out much at all for a guy who is as aggressive as he is at the plate, and as he fills that frame out even further, the hard-struck gap balls are going to start clearing fences.
Mauricio should see
2. Pete Alonso, 1B
Birthday: 12/7/1994 (24)
2018 level(s) played: AA Binghamton, AAA Las Vegas
2018 stats: .285/.395/.579, 132 G, 574 PA, 31 2B, 36 HR, 13.2% BB, 22.3% K
There’s been little doubt about what the purpose of Pete Alonso has been since the New York Mets drafted him in the 2nd round in 2016 out of the University of Florida. He sees the ball, he punishes the ball.
After a good, but not an incredible season in 2017, Alonso went absolutely bananas in 2018, fighting for the minor league lead in home runs before going to the Arizona Fall League and collecting a half-dozen more home runs. In his brief minor league career, Alonso has now hit 59 home runs in 255 minor league games. Before you go and attribute that to low-level exploitation, 38 of those home runs have come against the upper minors in 143 games.
Alonso does get plenty of criticism for his defensive work at first base, and he will never win a Gold Glove as a first sacker, but he can handle the position enough to get his bat into the New York Mets lineup for sure, and with Yoenis Cespedes likely to miss most, if not all, of the 2019 season, right-handed power will definitely be needed.
Whether he opens with the Mets or is up quickly after, Alonso should spend the majority of his 2019 in the big leagues. He’s not flashy as a prospect, but what he
1. Andres Gimenez, SS
Birthday: 9/4/1998 (20)
2018 level(s) played: high-A St. Lucie, AA Binghamton
2018 stats: .281/.347/.409, 122 G, 504 PA, 29 2B, 5 3B, 6 HR, 38 SB, 6.2% BB, 18.3% K
The New York Mets pushed their teenage shortstop wonder Andres Gimenez aggressively in the 2018 season. After a normal 2016 that saw him play at both DSL teams the Mets employ, Gimenez jumped all the way to
Instead, Gimenez opened in the Florida State League, typically a very difficult place to hit, and after he’d had plenty of success there, he finished the year in AA, where he acquitted himself quite well as well. Heck, in the Futures Game, even though he grounded out, he hit one of the hardest-hit balls in the entire Futures Game.
Gimenez has the raw tools to be a 5-tool type of guy. He has excellent contact skills, plus raw power that shows up already as above-average gap game power, double-plus speed, a plus shortstop defender, and a definite plus arm. While he does have the ability to be an excellent shortstop, he’s not quite to the level of current New York Mets starter Amed Rosario with the glove, which could lead to Gimenez moving to second base if he continues his progress.
Coming off a tough Arizona Fall League, Gimenez will look to prove himself in the upper minors in 2019, playing the entire season at just 20 years old. While he may take a bit of adjustment time once he gets to The Show, he’s on pace to get there very, very soon!
Benjamin Chase
After 6 years of writing for FanSided on various sites and offering contributions to various other websites, family changes have encouraged me to start this site. I spend a ton of time watching baseball at all levels, but I love watching minor league baseball on milb.tv as I'm hours away from the closest minor league team. This is an effort of all those games I enjoy on a daily basis!
