1. Matt Harvey | RHP | AA | Age – 22 | Drafted – 1st Round 2010 (8.0 B) – I was very bearish on him at the time of the draft and Harvey has managed to quickly turn me into a believer. His stuff has always been undeniable, but his command is much, much better than I anticipated which changed my tune. He gets the edge over Wheeler because of closeness to breaking in and his workhorse body.
2. Zack Wheeler | RHP | HiA | Age – 21 | Drafted – 1st Round 2009 (SFG) (8.5 C) – The switch back to his high school mechanics is looking like a brilliant one right now with the big improvement he showed in command. Just a tick under Harvey, but the two are interchangeable depending on whom you ask.
3. Jeurys Familia | RHP | AA | Age – 22 | Drafted – IFA 2007 (8.0 C) – I have always been one of Familia’s biggest fans. I ranked him 9th last year when most did not put him in the top 10 and I think he has a much better chance at sticking in the rotation than he gets credit for. I actually put a lot of stock into Wally Backman’s praise of him.
4. Brandon Nimmo | OF | Rk | Age – 18| Drafted – 1st Round 2011 (8.0 D) – I was a big proponent of going with Matt Barnes with this pick, but the Mets are top heavy with right-handed pitchers and lack serious upside with hitters, so this pick has grown on me. He is very far away, but the sky is the limit.
5. Jenrry Mejia | RHP | AAA | Age – 22 | Drafted – IFA 2006 (7.5 C) – The injury is definitely a serious concern, especially when that has been a fear of most experts. His upside still gets him near the top of this list because based on what he showed at age 20 in the Big Leagues I feel comfortable he can at least be this team’s closer one day. Optimistic? Maybe.
6. Kirk Nieuwenhuis | OF | AAA | Age – 24 | Drafted – 3rd Round 2008 (7.0 B) – In my opinion his defensive “liabilities” are overrated. He certainly has what it takes to play an adequate center field and I will get into more detail about that later. The only thing holding him back from being a definite regular right now is the strikeouts.
7. Cesar Puello | OF | HiA | Age – 21 | Drafted – IFA 2007 (7.5 C) – As excited as I am about the uptick in homeruns (especially in the FSL), I am equally disappointed with the dramatic drop-off in steals and the complete inability to take a walk considering his speed can be a problem on the basepaths. This year will be a very telling year for Puello.
8. Reese Havens | 2B | AA | Age – 25 | Drafted – 1st Round 2008 (7.0 C) – I love Reese, but it is getting to a point where it is time to for him to put up or shut up. He is already 25-years-old and has yet to play 100 games in a professional season. He very well should be the Mets starting 2nd baseman this year (and probably would be if not for injuries) and the fact that he has not been able to stay healthy to secure that job bothers me.
9. Wilmer Flores | SS | HiA | Age – 20 | Drafted – IFA 2007 (8.0 D) – Oh Wilmer. Such a tough one to grade/place. It is never a good sign when a player regresses while repeating a level. He doesn’t strike out a lot, but needs to show he can take a walk. Only real positive I guess is he has driven in over 80 runs the last two years. I consider that somewhat of a skill.
10. Michael Fulmer | RHP | GCL | Age – 18 | Drafted – 1st Supp. 2011 (7.5 C) – His ERA was pretty bloated okay, but I was more impressed with his striking out of two batters per inning in brief time. I maybe a little too optimistic about him.
11. Jordany Valdespin | 2B | AAA | Age – 24 | Drafted – IFA 2007 (7.0 C) – He has his problems like any prospects, however, if that power surge turns out to be for real then Valdespin becomes the Mets top 2nd base option over Havens.
12. Cory Mazzoni | RHP | HiA | Age – 22 | Drafted – 2nd Round 2011 (6.5 B) – Mazzoni was lights out in relief and displayed good command and stuff. I want to see how he performs in the rotation before he goes top 10, but things do look good here.
13. Darin Gorski | LHP | HiA | Age – 24 | Drafted – 4th Round 2009 (6.0 B) – When I went back to check, I was extremely surprised that I did not even have him in the top 50 last year because I did like him. Shows you what kind of season he had to go from unranked to the top lefty in the system.
14. Phillip Evans | SS | SSA | Age – 19 | Drafted – 15th Round 2011 (7.5 C) – I liked him enough that I was going to take him with my last pick in my Mets shadow draft, but instead went with Nathan Melendres because I didn’t think he would sign. Lucky for me the Mets took him and convinced him to sign so now I look like a genius!
15. Cory Vaughn | OF | HiA | Age – 22 | Drafted – 4th Round 2010 (7.0 C) – Because he was so good for Brooklyn in 2010, he gets a slight pass on 2011 due to the reports he played through a heel injury. He still did enough things well and has a high enough potential for me to discredit with an injury plagued season.
16. Juan Lagares | OF | HiA | Age – 22 | Drafted – IFA 2006 (6.5 C) – I still have absolutely no clue what I want to make of his stellar 2011 performance, but I am leaning more towards fluke than breakout which prevents me from putting him any higher.
17. Akeel Morris | RHP | Rk | Age – 22 | Drafted – 10th Round 2010 (8.0 D) – This is one of those he is “only ranked 17th”, but if you look at the rating I gave his potential it shows how much I think of him. His talent is right there with anyone on this list he just needs to find his control.
18. Collin McHugh | RHP | AA | Age – 24 | Drafted – 18th Round 2008 (6.0 B) – He is one of those guys that is tough to root against, so I couldn’t be happier that things finally started going his way last year. Doesn’t have the upside of others, but I think he might have a little bit of Dillon Gee in him.
19. Danny Muno | SS | SSA | Age – 22 | Drafted – 8th Round 2011 (6.0 B) – Was just a joy to watch play in Brooklyn. Plays the game the right way and has the look of a ballplayer out there. That is one of the only words to describe him—ballplayer. Fun fact: One of the only players to say, “What’s up” to me after the game in the hallways all season.
20. Domingo Tapia | RHP | SSA | Age – 20 | Drafted – IFA 2009 (8.0 D) – It is wild how few guys he is able to strikeout with his fastball, but he seems to have pretty good command for a young guy who can hit triple digits. Love the groundballs. Sky is the limit for him.
21. Chris Schwinden | RHP | MLB | Age – 25 | Drafted – 22nd Round 2008 (5.5 B) – I’ve liked him quiet a bit since the first time I watched him in Brooklyn and reaching the big leagues as a 22nd round pick already makes him a success
22. Matt Den Dekker | OF | AA | Age – 24 | Drafted – 5th Round 2010 (6.5 C) – Den Dekker showed a considerable more amount of pop than I thought he was capable of. The negative side is Double-A pitchers were able to exploit a hole in his swing that resulted in a worrisome strikeout rate. His defense is still his calling card.
23. Albert Cordero | C | LoA | Age – 22 | Drafted – IFA 2007 (7.0 C) – *SLEEPER ALERT* It is kind of strange that I dropped his in the rankings from last year and still placed the “sleeper” tag on him, but I think that is more a product of the rest of the system. He hit for a better average and more power the season went on. He just needs to start walking to become a complete player.
24. Aderlin Rodriguez | 3B | LoA | Age – 20 | Drafted – IFA 2008 (7.5 D) – The power was sensational. Unfortunately his defense and plate discipline are equally as unimpressive. This ranking might be a little harsh, but 78 errors in 210 games in horrific.
25. Darrell Cecilliani | OF | LoA | Age – 21 | Drafted – 4th Round 2009 (6.5 C) – Plain and simple he needs to start showing a little more offense if he wants to project as anything more than a 4th outfielder.
26. Juan Urbina | LHP | LoA | Age – 20 | Drafted – IFA 2009 (7.5 D) – I am actually slowing beginning to gain faith in Urbina. He is extremely young, projectable, and scouts love him I just want to see at least some respectable results first.
27. Logan Verrett | RHP | DNP | Age – 21 | Drafted – 3rd Round 2011 (6.5 C) – The reports all sound good and point to him being a solid yet unspectacular starter, I just want to see some data first.
28. Armando Rodriguez | RHP | HiA | Age – 24 | Drafted – IFA 2007 (6.0 C) – His stock had dropped after an injury-laden season, but he still had some pretty decent results. He still kept the hits down and strikeouts at a batter per inning pace, but the true test comes in Double-A this year.
29. Josh Edgin | LHP | HiA | Age – 25 | Drafted – 30th Round 2010 (5.5 B) – I love what he has done since being drafted. His upside is only a setup man and that might still be a stretch, but as Pedro Feliciano has shown, a good LOOGY has a ton of value.
30. Jack Leathersich | LHP | SSA | Age – 21 | Drafted – 5th Round 2011 (6.0 C) – Most people have Leathersich above Edgin, but that is because of what it called the shiny new toy syndrome. His upside is higher than Edgin, but the one who is closer to the majors gets the edge for me.
31. Jefry Marte | 3B | HiA | Age – 21 | Drafted – IFA 2011 (7.0 D) – His Arizona Fall League performance was outstanding, but that was just 22 games and he underperformed over 131 games with St. Lucie. Like with Aderlin Rodriguez, I might be ranking him a bit too harshly, but I expected a lot more out of him by this point.
32. Zach Lutz | 3B | AAA | Age – 25 | Drafted – 5th Round 2007 (6.5 D) – His power makes him an interesting option and I hope the Mets at least give him a look in Spring Training, he just needs to stay on the field for more than half a season.
33. Josh Satin | 1B/3B | MLB | Age – 27 | Drafted – 6th Round 2008 (5.0 B) – I was driving the Satin bandwagon as hard as anyone and couldn’t be happier he at least got a cup of coffee. I still see him as a useful utility player.
34. Rafael Montero | RHP | SSA | Age – 21 | Drafted – IFA 2011 (7.0 D) – *SLEEPER ALERT* I really like this kid. He came out of nowhere and really impressed on a scouting and statistical basis.
35. Bradley Marquez | SS/CF | DNP | Age – 19 | Drafted – 16th Round 2011 (7.5 D) – I can’t wait to see how he performs. Could turn into one of the Mets top prospects and can also completely flop on his face.
36. Greg Peavey | RHP | HiA | Age – 23 | Drafted – 6th Round 2010 (5.5C – 4.5B) – A personal favorite of mine, but he definitely disappointed in his first season. He was outstanding for Savannah, but his components really fell of during his first real test in St. Lucie.
37. Tyler Pill | RHP | SSA | Age – 21 | Drafted – 4th Round 2011 (5.5C-4.5B) – I think he compares very well to Greg Peavey in makeup and looked pretty good in brief action. Need to see at higher levels.
38. Gilbert Gomez | OF | HiA | Age – 19 | Drafted – IFA 2008 (7.0D – 4.5D) – He definitely has the tools to back up his 22 game performance in St. Lucie, BUT it was just 22 games and the rest of his track record makes it seem like a fluke.
39. Chase Huchingson | LHP | LoA | Age – 22 | Drafted – Undrafted 2010 ( 6.0D – 4.0D) – I like his potential a little better than most and hope he gets a full season to start this year.
40. Taylor Whitenton | RHP | LoA | Age – 23 | Drafted – 39th Round 2009 (5.5C – 4.0D) – He was terrific in 2011, HOWEVER, he was repeating the league and was on the older sign of players in the league. 2012 is an important year for him.
41. Erik Goeddel | RHP | LoA | Age – 23 | Drafted – 24th Round 2010 (6.5D – 4.5D) – Things are going very similar with him to how they were with another Bruins’ Mets prospect *cough*Brant Rustich*cough*. He is very successful when healthy, but injuries have been a recurring theme for him going back to college.
42. Travis Taijeron | OF | SSA | Age – 23 | Drafted – 18th Round 2011 (6.0D – 4.0D) – A super cool name and high power potential. Plate discipline will be his make or break point.
43. Juan Carlos Gamboa | SS | LoA | Age – 20 | Drafted – IFA 2010 ( 5.5D-4.0D) – The diminutive shortstop has put up pretty damn good stats over the last two years and showed quiet a considerable amount of pop. His defense seems a little weak and he has a big load in his swing so I want to see how those two things affect his stats over a full season.
44. Camden Maron | C | LoA | Age – 21 | Drafted – 34th Round 2009 (5.0C – 4.0C) – Is he “only” the next Josh Thole or does he take the next step forward and show us a little extra?
45. Angel Cuan | LHP | LoA | Age – 22 | Drafted – IFA 2007 (5.5C – 4.0B) – He had excellent stats and his command is superb, but I have some fears he can go down the Yusmeiro Petit route.
46. Luis Mateo | RHP | DSL | Age – 21 | Drafted – IFA 2011 (6.5D – 4.0C) – I really, really, really want to put Mateo higher, but I just can’t put a DSL player too much higher than this. His numbers were sensational even for being old for the league (a 1.15 FIP is ridiculous).
47. Joe Tuschak | OF | GCL | Age – 19 | Drafted – 6th Round 2011 (6.0D-4.0D) – His stats weren’t phenomenal, but he has the tools and cold weather players sometimes take a little bit longer to develop.
48. Robert Carson | LHP | AA | Age – 23 | Drafted – 14th Round 2007 (5.5D-4.5C) – His control has not gotten any better and as he has gone up the levels he has been hit harder. Losing all faith in him.
49. Brad Holt | RHP | AA | Age – 25 | Drafted – 1st Round 2008 (5.0D – 4.5C) – He is here almost solely on pedigree and with the tiniest sliver of hope he is able to turn things around.
50. Robbie Shields | 2B | HiA | Age – 24 | Drafted – 3rd Round 2009 (5.0C – 4.0C) – I am just a fan of his so I decided to give him the last spot. Statistically speaking he really wasn’t that bad. However, he is getting older and will need to make advances fast.
