Mets Minor League Blog 7-8-09
Toby Hyde
Both my friends and my mother have encouraged me to bring back my old email list. So expect me to show up in your email box on a regular basis again. If you like it, great, pass this along to friends and visit my site. If you don’t, unsubscribe from the mailing list. As always visit metsminorleagueblog.com for more pictures and analysis and as a distraction from the Mets’ big league woes.
- Top 41 Update
- Sickels
- Tuesday’s games
1. Top 41 Update
During the day on Wednesday, I will begin my review of my Preseason Top 41 Prospects in the Mets organization. The 41 is a nod to Seaver of course. I will evaluate whether each player’s stock is up or down and what else we can glean from his ’09 season. This will lead into a new reranking of top prospects next week. I haven’t decided if I’ll go 20 deep for HoJo, 31 deep for Piazza or some other number for some other reason. I’m taking suggestions.
2. Sickels
John Sickels of minorleagueball.com did an extraordinarily long prospect chat at Amazin’ Avenue Tuesday afternoon. Here are the three most interesting answers as far as I’m concerned:
Q: Is Jenrry Mejia a top-50 MLB prospect?
A: Yes. He’d be top 100 for sure. top 50….I don’t know. I’m going to do a new prospect list for Rotowire by the end of the month, so I’ll have a decision for that soon. He’s certainly taken a big step forward this year.
I missed Mejia when I was in Binghamton last week because he was out with a middle finger problem, but the reports on his stuff were very encouraging.
Q: What is Wilmer Flores’s ceiling?
A: Well he could be a superstar. He could also be just average, or he could flame out in Triple-A. His absolute ceiling would be as a .300, 30 homer guy. But it remains to be seen if his power will fully develop, and where he will fit defensively.
I think Sickels nails this. Flores has a high ceiling, but he’s far away from it, so the uncertainty about his eventual outcome is high.
Q: Regarding Francisco Pena, does he have a chance to become a decent hitting major league catcher? And how good his he behind the plate?
A: He sucks. He can’t hit and I don’t think he’ll start. He has a good arm but is still raw behind the plate. Maybe he’ll make it as a backup, but I don’t buy him as a regular at all.
I get that he's trying to be provocative, but I think this is odd at best. If Sickels thinks he’s an MLB backup, that makes Pena more valuable than all but a handful of his teammates. On the actual performance issue, though Sickels is right, it’s hard to be excited about a guy hitting .231/.277/.322 in advanced-A St. Lucie even if he is still just 19. The only positive I can find in Pena’s stat line is that he’s striking out less than at any point in his two seasons in Savannah, so if you were going all crazy optimistic, you would suggest that now that he’s chasing fewer pitches, he’ll start making better contact and his average and power numbers will rise.
3. Games
AAA: Scranton/WB Yankees (NYY) 5, @ Buffalo Bisons 1 (11 innings)
So, it’s more painful to lose a game you should have won (Bisons), than lose a game where you barely had a chance (Mets), right? And it’s really bad if you’re asking these questions on July 8, for a team that had dreams of a World Series, right? We digress.
Heading to the ninth with a 1-0 lead after six shutout innings from Ken Takahashi, Jon Switzer gave up the homerun that tied the game at 1-1. Eddie Kunz relieved Switzer to begin the 10th and worked a 1-2-3 inning. And then the 11th went: groundout from Yankees CF prospect Austin Jackson, walk, walk, mound visit, HBP, Adam Bostick relieves Kunz, lineout, grandslam.
AA: B-Mets @ Portland Sea Dogs - rained out
They’ll try for two on Wednesday. Brad Holt will throw in game one, scheduled for 5 PM.
A+: Jupiter Hammerheads (FLA) 8, @ St. Lucie Mets 3
Rehabbing Angel Pagan was 2-3 with an RBI double in his second game with St. Lucie. 20-year old Aussie 1B Stefan Welch, who didn’t hit much in Savannah (.239/.271/.359) was 2-4 with a double in his second game with St. Lucie.
SSA: @ Brooklyn Cyclones 3, Aberdeen Ironbirds (BAL) 2
In honor of Jewish Heritage Night at Keyspan Park, I ate a knish from the concession stand. Also, the Cyclones won their 10th straight game. LHP Mark Cohoon (4-0, 1.67) gave up just two runs on seven hits in seven innings. He struck out six and didn’t walk a batter with a fastball that was 86-88 and a flat slider.
These guys
pictured to the right were playing the W4th street subway station on my way to
the game. Cookie Monster and friend seemed
to be pulling an awful lot of dollar bill tips. I love NY.
Rookie (APP): Greeneville Astros (HOU) 13, @ Kingsport Mets 10
What’s going on in the Appalachian League this year? The 4-14 K-Mets are scoring 6.1 runs per game and giving up 7.5.
A bunch of guys who are old for the Appalachian League had two hits: 22yo CF Ronald Harris, 23yo 1B Jeff Flagg, 21 yo 3B Joe Bonfe and 21yo DH Pedro Zapata.
Zachary Von Tersh recorded only four outs before giving up eight runs, four earned.
Toby Hyde covers the Mets organization at Metsminorleagueblog.com.
