Mets Minor League Affiliates First Half Recap
With the minor league season (full-season teams) set to resume on Friday, it’s a good idea to check out where each of the Mets’ affiliates stand through the first half of the minor league season. While the second half has technically started for each of these teams in terms of the standings, the All-Star break […]
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With the minor league season (full-season teams) set to resume on Friday, it’s a good idea to check out where each of the Mets’ affiliates stand through the first half of the minor league season. While the second half has technically started for each of these teams in terms of the standings, the All-Star break is a good stopping point to check in on what’s happened during the season so far.
Luke Ritter, Photo by Herm Card
Triple-A Syracuse Mets
The first half of the season was kind to the Syracuse Mets, who sit at 57-35 on the year. Manager Dick Scott has done a tremendous job with the team just one year after they finished 61-85.
The Mets have had four batters with 10-plus home runs, though two of those players are no longer with the organization; Trayce Thompson (16 home runs) is now in the Cubs organization, while Rylan Bannon (15 home runs) was traded to the Twins just this week. Otherwise, Luke Ritter (19 home runs) and Mike Brosseau (10 home runs) have led the way in the power department.
Ritter leads all Mets minor leaguers with his 19 home runs, and he is currently tied for third place in the International League. His .845 OPS would be the second-highest career after the 2023 season, in which he had an .868 OPS between Double-A and Triple-A.
Brosseau was a welcome veteran addition in the middle of the season, and he’s played well with an .890 OPS. He’s hit the ball well, taking a .307 batting average into the break.
The best hitter on the team through the first half of the season, though, was Ben Gamel, who is currently on the major league roster. In 45 games, Gamel sported a .961 OPS, which would be the highest mark among Mets minor leaguers if he had enough plate appearances to qualify.
Carlos Cortes (.833 OPS), Pablo Reyes (.858 OPS), and Brett Baty (.876 OPS) have all been solid offensive contributors, while Luisangel Acuña (.666 OPS) has failed to live up to expectations.
The Mets have had four top pitching prospects on their roster this year. Christian Scott (2.76 ERA) was fantastic and is now on the major league team, while Dom Hamel (6.66 ERA), Mike Vasil (5.94 ERA), and Blade Tidwell (5.35 ERA) have all struggled over the duration of the first half.
José Buttó (3.05 ERA), currently with the major league team, and Joey Lucchesi (4.20 ERA) are the two veterans who have provided solid innings, while Tylor Megill (3.06 ERA) has made just four starts since being sent back down.
The bullpen has been really good over the first half of the season. Dedniel Núñez (1.38 ERA) earned a promotion to the big league club with stellar pitching while Yacksel Ríos (3.30 ERA) and Eric Orze (3.76 ERA) have pitched effectively while leading the team in appearances.
This team has received contributions in every aspect of the game, and it’s easy to see why they’ve had an extremely successful first half.
Ryan Clifford, Photo by Bronson Harris of the Binghamton Rumble Ponies
Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies
The Binghamton Rumble Ponies hovered around .500 for most of the first half, but a nine-game win streak to end it has them currently sitting at 46-38. Entering the second half, the Rumble Ponies will look to head back to the Eastern League finals after achieving that goal a season ago.
Despite the Rumble Ponies’ record, the team has had to deal with underperformance from guys who are supposed to be top prospects. Alex Ramírez (.663 OPS) has stolen 30 bases but otherwise hasn’t done much, while Kevin Parada (.699 OPS) and Jeremiah Jackson (.643 OPS) are also struggling with the bat.
Jackson is tied for the team lead with 12 home runs with Ryan Clifford, who has played in 24 fewer games. Clifford has been easily Binghamton’s best bat since joining the squad from Brooklyn earlier in the year. He possesses a .928 OPS and has the most extra-base hits on the team.
JT Schwartz (.832 OPS), recently promoted to Syracuse, had been Binghamton’s best bat for most of the year. He hit .295 during his 64 games in Binghamton, while no one else with 200-plus plate appearances is even batting over .260.
Binghamton’s best pitcher also joined the team midseason by way of promotion, and that’s Brandon Sproat (2.05 ERA). Sproat has been phenomenal in his eight starts with the Rumble Ponies, building on what was an even better start to the year in Brooklyn. Sproat possesses an 0.87 WHIP and 52 strikeouts in 48 1/3 innings with Binghamton, cementing himself as a consensus top-100 prospect in baseball. He was recently ranked the No. 45 MLB prospect by Baseball Prospectus.
Tyler Stuart (4.15 ERA) and Joander Suarez (4.71 ERA) have started the most games for the Rumble Ponies. While their ERAs might not reflect it, both pitchers have been pitching better of late minus one hiccup from Suarez. Justin Jarvis (2.90 ERA) and Luis Moreno (3.59 ERA) have also pitched well for Binghamton, while Nolan McLean (5.35 ERA) has yet to settle in after performing well in Brooklyn earlier in the year. McLean has decided to give up on hitting after posting a .565 OPS for Binghamton.
The bullpen has been shaky, with Binghamton’s top four relievers in terms of appearances all sporting an ERA above 5.00. Trey McLoughlin (2.39 ERA) and Wilkin Ramos (1.27 ERA), who is now in Syracuse, have been the most effective relievers for Binghamton this year.
If Binghamton wants any chance at returning to the Eastern League finals, they’ll need their bullpen and some of their high-profile offensive players to start playing better. Right now, though, they’re in a pretty good position.
Jonah Tong, Photo by George Velazquez / Brooklyn Cyclones
High-A Brooklyn Cyclones
The Brooklyn Cyclones have not had the kind of season they’ve wanted. Like Binghamton, they also hovered around .500 for most of the first half but lately have started trending in the wrong direction. Their current record is 40-47, which puts them in last place in the South Atlantic League North division.
Nick Lorusso (.834 OPS) was recently promoted to Binghamton after being Brooklyn’s best hitter over the year’s first half. The first baseman had 25 extra-base hits, including 11 home runs and 42 RBIs, all good for first on the team.
Brooklyn’s second-best bat this year is also now in Binghamton and is no longer pursuing a career at the plate. Nolan McLean (.849 OPS) looked great at the plate with Brooklyn in 25 games but has since struggled in Binghamton and is converting to pitcher full-time.
Stanley Consuegra (.718 OPS) has been a steady bat for Brooklyn, as has Nick Morabito (.700 OPS). Morabito has not lived up to his performance from earlier in the year in St. Lucie, but he currently leads the Mets’ minor leagues in batting average and stolen bases. 31 of his stolen bases have come with Brooklyn. Consuegra is now in Double-A.
The bat that was supposed to help rejuvenate the offense was Jesus Baez. He was doing just that (.779 OPS) but was injured during his eighth game with Brooklyn and is currently on the IL.
Outside of Brandon Sproat, who looked fantastic in his brief start to the year with Brooklyn, the Cyclones’ best pitcher has been Jonah Tong (2.85 ERA). Tong was promoted after a brilliant start in St. Lucie, and he’s been pitching even better than his ERA as of late. He currently leads the Mets minor leagues in strikeouts, recording 70 in 53 2/3 innings in Brooklyn.
Douglas Orellana (1.86 ERA) has been great in 13 appearances for Brooklyn, while Felipe De La Cruz (4.19 ERA) and Dakota Hawkins (4.26 ERA) have struggled lately but have been solid overall. De La Cruz, despite owning a 1.40 WHIP, has struck out 76 batters in 66 2/3 innings. Kade Morris (3.56 ERA) has also been really solid since being promoted from St. Lucie.
Josh Hejka has been far-and-away Brooklyn’s best reliever, owning a 1.77 ERA through the first half of the season. Joshua Cornielly (4.28 ERA) has a much more inflated ERA but is actually leading the team in saves with seven. Justin Lawson (3.54 ERA) and Brett Banks (3.18 ERA) have also been solid out of the bullpen. Hejka’s great start to the season earned him a promotion to Binghamon.
Brooklyn is lacking in offense, which is the primary reason for their struggles this year. They have a stud in Jonah Tong, but otherwise have a roster of unproven starters and relievers which is not the best formula for a team looking to compete.
Ronald Hernandez. Photo by Ed Delany of Metsmerized
Low-A St. Lucie Mets
The St. Lucie Mets have had a pretty disastrous season. At 30-57, they’re in dead last in their division and have been mostly uncompetitive for the first half of the season.
Nick Morabito was sensational in the early part of the year with St. Lucie, recording a 1.043 OPS with an 18:18 walk-to-strikeout ratio and 11 stolen bases in 24 games played. Outside of him, Jesus Baez (.782 OPS), now in Brooklyn, and Ronald Hernandez (.760 OPS) have been the Mets’ best hitters in the first half. Boston Baro (.736 OPS) has looked solid too.
Top prospect Colin Houck (.624 OPS) has not had a good season for the Mets, while neither has fellow 2023 draft pick A.J. Ewing (.622 OPS). Marco Vargas (.645 OPS) has been injured for most of the year but has not looked good when healthy, which is a surprise.
There haven’t been many productive pitchers on the roster in the first half of the season outside of Jonah Tong, who threw 18 2/3 scoreless innings with 36 strikeouts before being promoted to Brooklyn.
Franklin Gomez (4.13 ERA) and Ernesto Mercedes (5.01 ERA) lead the team in starts. Gomez is coming off of two solid starts to end the first half, while Mercedes has pitched better, but not great, recently. Joel Díaz (5.67 ERA), Saul Garcia (6.58 ERA), and Edgar Moreta (7.98 ERA) have all struggled while receiving regular starts.
The bullpen doesn’t look much better, unfortunately. Ryan Ammons (2.88 ERA) had been the team’s best reliever before being promoted. Now, that distinction probably belongs to lefty Gregori Louis (1.57 ERA), who started the year in the Florida Complex League. Juan Arnaud (5.19 ERA), Alan Perdomo (4.58 ERA), and Miguel Alfonseca (5.01 ERA) lead the team in appearances, and all three have not looked good.
St. Lucie has struggled most of the season. Many of their best players were understandably promoted, but guys such as Colin Houck and A.J. Ewing need to perform better.
Editors note: FCL and DSL are playing games this week, so some stats may be outdated by a game.
Florida Complex League Mets
The FCL Mets have not been particularly good through 50 games, as they’re currently 22-28. Unfortunately, their season is coming to an end, but there have been some standout performers.
A.J. Ewing looked great for the FCL Mets before his promotion to St. Lucie, recording a .993 OPS which would be tops on the team. Close behind him is catcher Daiverson Gutierrez (.990 OPS), who started the year in the Dominican League. Simon Juan (.811 OPS) and Yonatan Henriquez (.832 OPS) both looked good this summer, and top prospect Jeremy Rodriguez (.740 OPS) has been solid. Still, he’s 18 years old so there’s plenty of room for improvement.
Brayhans Barreto (2.76 ERA) both had the most appearances on the team and the lowest ERA on the team. Lucas Gordillo (3.94 ERA), Christian Rodriguez (3.89 ERA), and Joseph Yabbour (3.24 ERA) have all pitched well as well.
Dominican Summer League Mets
The DSL Mets Orange are 14-17 in the Dominican Summer League this summer. Justin Ramirez (.720 OPS) has been arguably the team’s best bat, while Fredayan Figuera (2.16 ERA) has been the best pitcher on the team.
The DSL Mets Blue have had worse luck and are 12-19 this summer. Despite that, Rainer Reyes (.946 OPS), Edward Lantigua (.866 OPS), and Roybert Herrera (.884 OPS) have looked fantastic at the plate, while Jose Guevara (1.72 ERA) has been the team’s best pitcher.
Two of the Mets’ top signings from the most recent IFA class, Yovanny Rodriguez (.630 OPS) and Vladi Miguel Gurrero (.576 OPS), have struggled.
Brandon Sproat, Photo by Bronson Harris of Binghamton Rumble Ponies
Organizational Leaders
Batting
(Among Qualified Players)
AVG – Nick Morabito (STL/BRK) – .307
OPS – Ryan Clifford (BRK/BNG) – .847
HR – Luke Ritter (SYR) – 19
SB – Nick Morabito (STL/BRK) – 38
Pitching
(Among Qualified Players)
ERA – Brandon Sproat (BRK/BNG) – 1.71
SO – Jonah Tong (STL/BRK) – 106
WHIP – Brandon Sproat (BRK/BNG) – 0.95
Players of the First Half
Offense – Ryan Clifford, 1B/OF Binghamton
Ryan Clifford had an underwhelming start for High-A Brooklyn, recording a .716 OPS in 31 games played. He had a .216 batting average and just one home run, his .412 on-base percentage being the one thing saving him from an awful start to the year. Everything changed, though, when he got called up to Binghamton.
Clifford’s low batting average and lack of power can almost certainly be attributed to the difficulty Brooklyn’s stadium presents to lefty batters. Now that he’s in Binghamton, he’s hit 12 home runs and 14 doubles in 49 games and has a .928 OPS there. He’s been, without a doubt, the Mets’ best minor league bat for much of the summer, although injuries to Jett Williams and Drew Gilbert help his cause. Nevertheless, Clifford has been outstanding and, at 20 years old, is looking like a future impact player for the Mets.
Pitching – Brandon Sproat, P Binghamton
Whereas Clifford struggled in Brooklyn and turned it on in Binghamton, Brandon Sproat has been dominant the entire year, both in Brooklyn and Binghamton. The 2023 second-round draft pick out of the University of Florida has a sub-2.00 ERA, a SO/9 above 9.00, and a WHIP below 1.00.
At 23 years old, Sproat is turning into one of the best pitching prospects in baseball. He could reach Syracuse or perhaps even the major league team by the end of the year. Regardless of where he ends up this year, the future is undeniably bright for Sproat.
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