We originally put out this list in November, and the Mets have lost three prospects from that list.
Outfielder Isaiah Greene and right-handed pitcher Josh Wolf were traded in the Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco deal, and right-handed pitcher Dedniel Nunez went to the Giants in the Rule 5 draft.
The Mets also acquired outfielder Khalil Lee, who will be ranked higher than where we had any of the prospects I just named.
We wrote in November that the Mets' farm system should be ranked somewhere in the neighborhood of 17th-21st in the game, and minus Greene, Wolf, Nunez and plus Lee, I think it is fair to say this system is more in the 21-23 range.
The Mets' scouting department led by Tommy Tanous and Marc Tramuta is now tasked with adding more prospects to this pool via the MLB Draft, where the Mets will pick 10th in July.
Now, here are SNY’s updated Top 20 Mets prospects for the 2021 season...
1. C Francisco Alvarez
Signed as international Free Agent in 2018
Alvarez is an 18-year-old catcher who received the opportunity to go to the Mets' alternate training site in Brooklyn this past summer as well as the instructional league in Port St Lucie this past fall. Alvarez has a compact, easy swing at the plate that produces natural power to center and the opposite way. People within the organization rave about his improvements behind the plate, including great pop time on throws to second base. If you told me that I had to pick one prospect in the system who is most likely to make an All-Star game, it is Alvarez.
MLB ETA: 2023
2. RHP Matt Allan
Drafted in the 3rd round (#89 overall) of the 2019 MLB Draft
Some may be surprised to see Allan ranked here, but I am incredibly high on the right-hander. The 19-year-old impressed at the alternate site to the point that Mets manager Luis Rojas even mentioned him as someone they hoped could help the big league team. That was a bit of a stretch, but he is very advanced with an already big league body at 6’3” and 225 pounds. Right now, Allan has a three-pitch-mix with both his mid-90s fastball and elite spin rate curveball being plus offerings. His change-up has been a big focus where he’s made that into an average offering that flashes above average. With some more development of his third pitch, Allan has all the makings of a No. 2 starter.
MLB ETA: 2023
3. SS Ronny Mauricio
Signed as international free agent in 2017
Many have Mauricio as the No. 1 or No. 2 prospect in the system, but to me he was a prospect who was very much affected by the lost minor league season, as I thought he would have a chance to show up in High-A in 2020. He is a big-bodied shortstop who is likely to outgrow the position, but he still has soft hands and an above average arm that profiles nicely at third base. At the plate, he is still a bit raw, but he has shown the ability to turn on the inside pitch and hit it with some power from the left side. At some point the tools have to lead to some results, as he has a career .681 OPS in the minors. I am still excited about his potential, but I am just more excited by Alvarez and Allan at this point.
MLB ETA: 2022
4. OF Pete Crow-Armstrong
Drafted in the 1st round (#19 overall) of the 2020 MLB Draft
Crow-Armstrong had the opportunity to go to instructs and did not look out of place. He drove balls gap to gap and even had a 107 mph exit velocity home run. Where his power ends up long-term will determine a lot of his upside. His hit and run tools show above average, but his biggest strength is defensively, where he is truly plus in center field. Former director of player development Jared Banner told MLB dot com in regards to Crow-Armstrong’s defense: “You could put him in center field in a big league game today and he’d be one of the best.”
MLB ETA: 2024
5. 3B Brett Baty
Drafted in the 1st round (#12 overall) of the 2019 MLB Draft
The first draft pick of former GM Brodie Van Wagenen’s regime in a sense personifies the build of a Mets prospect. He has plus raw power to all fields and has plus knowledge of the strike zone, but there is some wonder about his overall hit tool and where he ends up on the diamond. He is currently a third baseman, but there are questions in the scouting community over whether his future is at first base. He is a tireless worker and has made some strides at third, but the questions still remain. Baty was drafted as an older high school player and is already 21 years old. The loss of the 2020 minor league season impacted his development as well. I think the Mets ought to be aggressive and push him to High-A Brooklyn and have him skip Low-A entirely.
MLB ETA: 2023
6. RHP J.T. Ginn
Drafted in the 2nd Round (#52 overall) of the 2020 MLB Draft
The Mets manipulated their draft pool allotment in 2019 to work out signing Allan in the 3rd round, and in 2020 they did the same thing to work out signing Ginn in the 2nd round. Ginn is one of the rare 1st round picks out of high school to go to college, and unfortunately last March he had to undergo Tommy John surgery. If Ginn had not been injured, he would not have made it to the Mets' first round pick, let alone their second. There is opportunity for this to be a steal. Ginn has a bowling ball of a sinker that gets up to 97 mph and a plus slider. He needs work on the change-up, but Ginn could be a legit No. 2 or No. 3 starter. By all accounts, he is ahead of schedule in his rehab.
MLB ETA: 2023
7. 3B Mark Vientos
Drafted in the 2nd round (#59 overall) of the 2017 MLB Draft
Vientos is a prospect who will make it to the big leagues if his power brings him there. The power tool is above average with the chance to be a 20+ home run threat. He shows the ability to consistently barrel the ball and has produced some of the best exit velocities in the organization. The hit tool is below average and I do not expect him to ever hit for a high average. Defensively, he should be an average regular at third base with limited range but a plus arm.
MLB ETA: 2022
8. OF Khalil Lee
Acquired via trade from Kansas City through Boston for right-handed pitcher Josh Winckowski and a player to be named later
Lee was the Royals' 3rd round pick in the 2018 MLB Draft out of high school in Virginia. He is a pretty exciting prospect with a wide array of tools. To me, his best tool is his arm which profiles as plus in any spot in the outfield. Defensively, he has worked hard on his routes and jumps in center field and has the speed to play it. Ultimately, I believe Lee can play any spot in the outfield, but you’d like to see him really excel defensively in center.
Offensively, he has contact issues (28.2 percent strikeout rate in 2019) and has above average raw power that he’s been unable to put into games as of yet. He has good on-base and pitch recognition skills, leading to good on-base percentage numbers in his career. On the base paths he has above average speed and high base running IQ that led to him stealing 53 bases in Double-A in 2019. If it all breaks right, Lee could be a 20/20 type threat who plays every day in center field. With his on-base skills, defense and base running I cannot envision him being less than a fourth outfielder. I expect you will see Lee in Queens at some point in 2021.
MLB ETA: 2021
9. RHP Robert Dominguez
Signed as an International free agent in 2019
Call this a bold call, but the excitement about Dominguez being described to me by people in the organization has me excited and willing to make the decision to put him inside the top 10. The Mets believe they signed the best arm in the 2019 international free agent class with Dominguez. When the Mets signed him he was throwing in the low 90s, but Dominguez has a high work ethic and with some mechanical adjustments started throwing mid 90s and touching 99 mph. Dominguez has a feel for a breaking ball. His change-up is basically non-existent at the moment, and that will determine long-term if he ends up a starter or a two-pitch power reliever. I am optimistic that Dominguez could end up being a big league starter with big time power stuff.
MLB ETA: 2024
10. OF Alexander Ramirez
Signed as International free agent in 2019
If you’d like to dream, Ramirez has the potential to be above average or better in all five tools. He was signed for $2.05 million in 2019, which was the Mets' biggest bonus of the year and is a very projectable 6’3” and 175 pounds with room to fill out. Offensively, he already shows an advanced knowledge of the strike zone and shows the ability to spray line drives gap to gap. As he fills out, the thought is he will tap into above average power. Defensively, he projects to be able to handle center field, but also could shift to a corner as he has a solid arm.
MLB ETA: 2024
