Yesterday, Talkin’ Mets discussed the top positional prospects in the organization. Today, it’s the pitching. Remember the criteria that David Mills and I put together:
Our proprietary criteria for consideration on the Talkin’ Mets prospect list:
Players are eligible until their 26th birthday
Hitters with 200+ MLB ABs & pitchers with 16 MLB starts or 30 appearances are no longer eligible
Pitchers recovering from TJ, shoulder surgery, or serious incapacity are not included
2024 draftees are not included
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Top 10 Pitching Prospects
By David Mills
1. Brandon Sproat, RHP
2. Christian Scott, RHP
3. Jonah Tong, RHP
4. Blade Tidwell, RHP
5. Nolan McLean, RHP
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These top-5 are coming on like eyepopping gangbusters and not looking back, which should be a lot of fun for Mets fans…
SPROAT (23) was likely behind Scott, Tidwell, Vasil, and Hamel when the season began. But his dynamic command and powerhouse velocity finds him surging through the ranks to our No. 1 slot. It is so good that he may take up residence at Citi Field sometime between now and a September call-up. Sproat’s running two-seamer clocks in at 97-99. His filthy, high 80s changeup devastates left-handed hitters as it fades away at the dish. Almost as good is the mid-80s slider to righties. His 79-81 curveball shows some promise and may become a nice weapon someday. After just 25 innings at Brooklyn, he was moved to Binghamton, where he has flourished with a .0898 WHIP, 2.4 BB9, 10.0 K9. He even pitched a strong 1-2-3 frame at the 2024 Futures Game.
SCOTT (25), like Sproat, was a Florida Gator who impressed Mets scouts. A compelling four-seamer sits 94-98 and plays nicely up the ladder. His arsenal of splitter/changeup can devastate lefties, with a slider and sweeper to fool righties. Scott has looked solid in most of his Mets starts, with a penchant for giving up the long ball. If he improves his sinking two-seamer, the arsenal will be breathtaking. Plenty of promise and poise. I doubt he will see the minors again.
Silva writes…As of this writing, there is no word on his UCL injury, so all we can hope is that some rest will be the tonic he needs. I wouldn’t expect Scott to contribute significantly at the big league level anymore in 2024.
TONG (21) is yet another fast riser in the system, who is turning heads in Brooklyn after four scoreless FSL starts with Ks aplenty. The change-up needs work, but the over-the-top four-seamer is now mid-90s with over 20 inches of induced vertical break. His two breaking pitches—curveball and tight slider—both sit in the mid-80s and shove. The Mets are letting him pitch. He has already amassed 15 starts and 76 innings this season with a 2.37 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 110 K, 29 BB, only 1 HR, and .183 BAA. Impressive indeed. This hurler is a keeper.
TIDWELL (23) was the Sproat of 2023, as he moved from Brooklyn to Binghamton and overpowered hitters for 116 frames with a 31.4 K% and .208 average against. Like Scott, he is adept at the high hard one to induce feeble swings in the 96-98 range. The secondary weapon is a wipeout slider. Like Tong, his change-up needs remediation. Some control issues are still present. If Tidwell ends up as a two-pitch arm, he could be headed to the bullpen. A third or fourth offering makes him middle of the rotation fodder.
McLEAN (22) announced recently he was giving up his two-way dream and concentrating on pitching. A wise choice that caused us to move him up to this grouping. Even though the Mets project McLean as a late-innings bullpen piece, he has started in all 17 appearances this season to develop his repertoire and build arm strength. One of the few Mets prospects to hone a cutter, his best two pitches now are a mid-90s fastball with arm-side run and a plus mid-80s slider that moves two ways. His slowish curveball is better than his change-up.
6. Tyler Stuart, RHP
7. Mike Vasil, RHP
8. Dom Hamel, RHP
9. Kade Morris, RHP
10. Joander Suarez, RHP
For the first three of the back five there has been a bit of a fall from grace. The more responsible take is they’ve been passed by some streaking comets…
STUART (24) is one of those huge body (6’9”/250 lbs.) hurlers that the Mets love to run out there as starters even though they might better profile as relievers. After a successful 2023 in Brooklyn and Binghamton with an MiLB leading 2.20 ERA in 21 starts, he has 78 innings in 16 starts for the Rumble Ponies this season (4.15 ERA, only 19 BB, 85 K and 8 HR), while adding pitches to his former two-pitch arsenal. His effective two-seamer sinks from a three-quarter arm slot and mixes nicely with a low 80s slider. A four-seamer, cutter, and change-up are being fine-tuned. Opposing GMs may be very intrigued by this guy.
VASIL (24) was the darling of prognosticators last season. After nagging injuries kept his stats at bay during his 2022 season, when he threw 71 innings and had six appearances in the AFL, Vasil rallied in 2023 with 124 frames. Double-A stats were impressive, with a 3.71 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, and 57/8 K/BB ratio. Triple-A numbers were more pedestrian. His mid-90s four-seamer lost velocity as the season wore down. He features two other quality pitches—an effective 12/6 curveball to lefties and a cutter down and away to righties. Decent sweeper/slider, and a change-up that can deliver swings and misses. Even though Vasil’s 6’5”/225 lb. body is made for the mound, Triple-A has been a big hill to climb.
HAMEL (25) is another hurler who seems miffed at Triple-A after successful stints in High-A and Double-A. He has 17 starts this season and averages 4.6 innings with a 6.49 ERA and 1.7 WHIP. He walks a batter every 1.5 innings. So, what keeps him in the mix? A carry fastball with 20+ inches of vertical break and a repertoire that also includes a slider, curveball, change-up, and cutter. His slider is in the vicinity of 3,000 rpm. The second half of this season may be do or die for Hamel.
MORRIS (22) has one full year of successful A-Ball under his belt after being the Mets third-round pick in 2023 out of UNLV. The righty has four sound pitches he can locate, a repeatable delivery (always a good sign), decent breaking stuff, and a low to mid-90s fastball. We like his mound moxie and fire in the belly.
SUAREZ(24) is a Venezuelan who has been in the Mets system for six years and is destined to be a Rule 5 draftee. After missing the 2021 season with TJ surgery, he has rebounded in 2024 to 17 appearances, 15 starts, 85 innings, 2.5 BB/9 and 8.6 K/9. That follows an outstanding 2023 second half with the Cyclones and Rumble Ponies. His arsenal includes a plus fastball in the mid-90s, gyro slider, curveball, and change-up that keeps hitters off-balance. Remarkably, Suarez reduced his walk rate significantly. There may well be something here worth holding on to.
ATTRACTING ATTENTION
Raimon Gomez, RHP (21); Wilkin Ramos, RHP (23); Saul Garcia (21)
TALKIN’ METS CRYER: It must be noted that the Mets are woefully short of southpaw hurlers (like most teams) and need to put on a full-court press to find a few. There is not a lefty in the system’s top-20 arms.
