Mets' Carlos Mendoza: 'There's a lot to like' about top pitching prospect Brandon Sproat

The Mets head into the 2025 season with a starting rotation consisting of tested veterans like Sean Manaea, Clay Holmes, Kodai Senga, Frankie Montas, and David Peterson, along with possible sixth-man options like Paul Blackburn, Griffin Canning, and Tylor Megill.

But along with those veterans in spring training this year is Brandon Sproat, the club’s top pitching prospect and a 2023 second-round pick who has darted through the minor leagues and is knocking on the door of making his major league debut, which will likely happen at some point this season.

The 24-year-old right-hander’s talent was on full display in Port St. Lucie, Fla. on Thursday, as he pitched two innings of live batting practice.

Afterward, manager Carlos Mendoza said that he likes what he sees from Sproat as he works on refining his repertoire of breaking pitches to go along with his mid-to-high-90s fastball.

“There’s a lot to like about him,” Mendoza said. “He’s got five pitches and the ability to spin the baseball, whether it’s the short slider, sweeper, the changeup is really, really good, and then he’s got velo. Everything I’ve heard about him, whether it’s the makeup, the compete, how much he cares, it’s exciting. Saw him today and just watching him interact the past couple of days, pretty impressive.”

While Sproat has an outside shot of making the big club out of spring training, the more likely scenario is that the University of Florida product starts the season where he finished last year, with Triple-A Syracuse.

But however long Sproat is with the big league team, Mendoza hopes that the young righty can be a sponge and soak up as much as he can from the veterans around him.

“[I’d like to see him] get ready for his season. To stay healthy, and that was a conversation that we had with him this morning, to make sure he learns, he picks people’s brains here, and then just learn as much as possible,” said Mendoza. “What I want to see from him? Just continue to learn, be healthy, and put yourself in a position where you’re in the mix.”

Sproat began last season by dominating at High-A Brooklyn, pitching to a ridiculous 1.07 ERA in six games. After moving up to Double-A Binghamton, he was again terrific as he posted a 2.45 ERA in 11 starts. He climbed up the ladder again to Triple-A Syracuse, but this rung proved more slippery than the previous ones, as Sproat struggled to the tune of a 7.53 ERA in seven starts.

“I kind of got away from who I am up there, and that’s attacking no matter what and not worrying about results,” Sproat said. “…It was a learning curve. You learn from it, you move on.”

In fact, Mendoza said that there’s part of him that was okay with seeing Sproat struggle, and more importantly, how he responds to it.

“That’s baseball,” said Mendoza. “Honestly, it’s probably not going to sound right, but you want those guys to struggle in the minor leagues, you want those guys to face some kind of adversity and see how they respond. Because that’s part of it, being a big leaguer, the mental side and how you’re going to respond after a bad outing.

“You’re going to get knocked down,” Sproat said, “and you’ve got to find a way to get back up.”

There’s Something About Jett

Jett Williams, the Mets’ No. 1 overall prospect, was in camp on Thursday as he looks to push for a spot on the Opening Day roster.

Like Sproat, the most likely outcome is that Williams starts the year in Syracuse and makes his MLB debut at a later point this season, but even Mendoza had to admit that Williams has a way of carrying himself that makes that big league debut seem closer and closer.

“He’s got to stay healthy, he’s got to get at-bats, and he’s got to continue his development,” Mendoza said. “…It’s good that he’s healthy and I’m excited.

“He’s a kid who can play short, can play second base, and he can play center field. Anywhere you put him, you feel good because he’s got instincts. He’s a baseball player, if you want to call it that way. He’s not afraid. And there’s something about him, the way he carries himself even though he’s not too big. There’s something about this kid – something there.”

Speaking later on Thursday, president of baseball operations David Stearns echoed the manager on the need for Williams to be able to play a full season.

“Priority one is let’s have a healthy season that allows him to get 550 plate appearances,” Stearns said. “That would be outstanding.

“I’m pretty confident that if we have a healthy season… we’re gonna see a player that is gonna continue to grow, move up the latter a little bit and put himself in position where people are starting to talk about him as a major league option. But it all starts with staying on the field and staying healthy.”

As far as where Stearns and the organization see Williams, in addition to short, being able to play both second base and center field “at a high level.”

Stearns said Williams “hasn’t had the reps yet” at second or center “but he has all the skills and tools to be able to do it” and they will work to get him time at both spots this year.

“What I would anticipate, is we’re looking at a player who can play the three premium positions at an average or better level,” he continued. “I really think he has that ability to do and there aren’t too many people who can do that.”