Where do latest 2023 MLB Draft picks land among Mets' top 10 prospects?

The top-10-prospect list looks different for the first time in years as Francisco Álvarez, Brett Baty and Mark Vientos have all graduated. By losing two top 20 prospects in the sport off the list, the outlook of the system will take a dip.

Naturally, a farm system will go through ebbs and flows as players graduate and others join the list. The goal of this new player development system with director of hitting Jeff Albert and director of pitching Eric Jagers is to not have drastic peaks and valleys. You want to be consistently producing big leaguers.

Over the past 10 drafts, the Mets have had the lowest number of big leaguers produced in the league. That’s less than ideal, but on the other side of the coin, they are second in baseball in total WAR produced from the last 10 drafts. They have developed elite talents but have lacked producing big-league depth, which is important and what the best organizations in baseball do. The concept now is to not look back on what was, but to look ahead to what’s to come. I still believe the Mets have a high-level scouting department that knows how to pick players, and now the player development system and analytics department are growing and need to get to that level as well. This is something that simply takes time.

However, early results from the 2022 class -- which is the first class under the watch of the new player development system -- have been strong. I will touch on a few of them in the list below, but especially on the pitching side there’s been some great performances.

When I had written up these top prospect lists over the last couple years, it was often stating how the farm system was top heavy and lacking depth. I think that is on the verge of flipping. They may not have a prospect who is at the top of the sport, but the top 10 (and 20 that I will update later this year) is moving in the right direction with more depth.

Without further ado, here are my updated top 10 Mets prospects:

1. C Kevin Parada -- High-A Brooklyn

The Mets selected Parada with the No. 11 pick in the 2022 MLB Draft. He had told us as a guest on The Mets Pod that he struggled a bit early on with the colder weather. He is from California and went to school in Georgia, so cold is not something he knows.

Defensively, he is a good receiver and framer; his struggles have been throwing, as he’s only thrown out 16 percent of potential base stealers. He still has a good chance to stick behind the plate and has the chance to be a well above average starting catcher. Some scouts believe he is athletic enough to possibly play left field down the road if there was a need to move him.

MLB ETA: 2025

2. SS Colin Houck -- 2023 Draft Pick

Houck was the Mets’ first pick at No. 32 overall in the 2023 class. He was nearly unanimously considered a top-15 prospect in a deep 2023 draft class, with Baseball America being the low outlet on him at No. 21. Regardless, the Mets took a player who may have been the best available talent at their original pick of No. 22 at No. 32. The dual-sport athlete, who is a 3-star quarterback recruit, will now be focusing solely on baseball. He possesses above average tools across the board but has a quiet (in a good way) swing considering he wasn’t a full-time baseball player. He has a chance for plus power as he physically matures, likely a long-term third baseman with plenty of arm for the spot. If he puts it together, there is All-Star potential here.

MLB ETA: 2027

3. SS/LF Ronny Mauricio -- Triple-A Syracuse

Mauricio has had a roller-coaster ride of a career. After signing as a big international free agent, he was a constant in top-100 lists. He fell off a lot of them after the 2022 season where he showed some power in Double-A Binghamton, but there were a lot of questions about his bat-to-ball skills and approach. He has answered a lot of those concerns this season in Triple-A where he is slashing .303/.347/.518 with 25 doubles and 14 home runs in 79 games. Walks will never be a big part of his approach, but he has upped his walk percentage from 4.4 last year. A big development is his strikeout rate has dipped from 23.1 percent last year. He projects to have above-average power and I imagine his baseball savant page will one day have a lot of red for exit velocities as he routinely is north of 105 mph.

Defensively, they have started other positions this year. Second base did not work out well and I think that experiment is largely over. He is adjusting to left field and playing the outfield for the first time in his life. It’s been a little hit and miss, but most believe that is where his future is. I think if the Mets end up selling the likes of Tommy Pham, Mauricio could get some run in the outfield with the big-league club this summer.

MLB ETA: 2023

4. SS Jett Williams -- Low-A St. Lucie

Williams was one of my favorite players in the 2022 class. He may not have hit for the average that I expected, but he has shown true plus-pitch-recognition skills and a willingness to take his walks. The Mets believe the bat-to-ball skills will come around and he will hit for more average as he develops. Through 68 games, he is slashing .242/.418/.372 with nine doubles and four triples. He had a strong month of June, slashing .280/.433/.467. He is a plus athlete and runner who has 28 stolen bases and has only been caught six times.

Defensively, he is playing both shortstop and center field, with some scouts believing, long term, he is probably a second baseman. He looks the part of a sparkplug type of player that bats near the top of a lineup and can create havoc on the base paths.

MLB ETA: 2026

5. OF Alex Ramirez -- High-A Brooklyn

Ramirez has been a bit of a disappointment in 2023. He is someone I expected to take a big jump forward repeating the Brooklyn level, but it just has not all clicked. He still flashes some power with 17 extra-base hits, including five home runs. He has flashed the above-average defensive ability in center field. There is another half of baseball for him to turn it around, and he has the skill set to do so. It is a matter of taking the raw above-average tools that he has across the board and bringing them to the ballpark on a consistent basis. He has a chance to move up or even further down this list when it’s updated later this year.

MLB ETA: 2025

6. RHP Blade Tidwell -- High-A Brooklyn

Tidwell was the Mets' second-round pick in the 2022 class. He would have been a first rounder if not for some shoulder tendinitis that caused him to miss some time in his last year at Tennessee. He struggled in April and May adjusting to pro ball, especially on the control side. Since June 1, however, Tidwell has pitched like what you would have expected from a first-round talent. He is 6-3 with a 3.45 ERA and 1.27 WHIP in 15 starts over 70.1 IP with the Cyclones this season. His fastball will get up to 98 mph with a big-time swing-and-miss slider. The changeup has taken a step forward this year, but still needs refining. If he can keep his control in line, he could certainly be a mid-rotation starter that starts making top-100-prospect lists.

MLB ETA: 2025

7. RHP Mike Vasil -- Triple-A Syracuse

As a high school senior, Vasil was considered a top-25 prospect in his draft class but pulled out to fulfill his commitment to Virginia. He had an up-and-down college career where they tried to change his repertoire to be a sinker/slider guy. The Mets took him in the eighth round based on remembering him as a high school prospect and believing they could find that pitcher again, and they have done so. They turned him back into a four-seam fastball guy that will sit 93-95 and touch 97 mph with a gyro slider, curveball and developing change-up. He projects more as a No. 4 type of starter, but this is a big example of a positive player development story from an eighth-round pick.

MLB ETA: 2024

8. RHP Brandon Sproat -- 2023 Draft Pick

Aggressive? Perhaps. The Mets drafted Sproat in the third round of the 2022 Draft, but he chose to return to Florida as he sought out becoming a first-round pick. He had an up-and-down final year at Florida where hits allowed were down, strikeouts were up in a big way, but walks were slightly up and home runs allowed were tripled. There is some question about the fastball shape, but you cannot teach sitting 96-98 touching 101 with some run. Ideally you want that pitch riding with induced vertical break, but it may just be best as a sinker. His change-up made a huge jump this year and shows as a plus pitch.

In 2022, his slider was an above-average pitch, it may have fallen back a little bit in 2023, but there’s still room for improvement there. He has a get-me-over curveball that may not end up making it long in pro ball. Control and command are the story here. If he throws strikes, and throws good strikes, he has mid-rotation upside. However, if he struggles with command he could certainly profile as a late-inning reliever with power stuff.

MLB ETA: 2025

9. RHP Dom Hamel -- Double-A Binghamton

If you read his basic stat line, you won’t be blown away. He has a 5.07 ERA in 16 games for Double-A Binghamton. He has shown the ability to miss bats, striking out 97 batters in 71 innings. Where you want to buy in is the stuff and metrics behind Hamel’s pitches. He has a 92-94 mph fastball that will touch 96 but with plus ride, inducing vertical break north of 20 inches when he throws it well. His sweeper shows plus spin rates, sometimes exceeding 3,000 rpm. He is working on a cutter this year and has also thrown a curveball and changeup.

Nobody in the Mets system knows how to spin a ball the way Hamel does. Sometimes he struggles with control, though some wonder if it’s because his ball almost moves too much. He has made strides this year as his walk rate is down. He could be a back-end starter or a multi-inning reliever.

MLB ETA: 2024

10. RHP Christian Scott -- Double-A Binghamton

Scott is another player development story. He was a reliever at Florida and flew under the radar early in his professional career, but has broken out in a meaningful way in 2023. He will locate a three-pitch mix starting with a fastball that will sit 93-95 mph and touch 97 with an above-average slider that induces swings-and-misses and has a chance to be plus. He has a below-average changeup right now that is really only used against left-handed hitters. If he can develop that pitch to be average or better, you could be looking at a back-end starter. If not, then I think Scott becomes a factor as a bullpen piece in 2024 that relies on fastball/slider to get hitters out.

MLB ETA: 2024