Three Mets Prospects Included in Baseball America’s Top 100
Photo by Allen Greene Photography
Three promising New York Mets prospects have been included in Baseball America‘s pre-2021 top-100 prospect rankings (paywall), with one player making a significant leap, another keeping his foothold in the middle of the pack, and another making his debut on the list.
Catcher Francisco Alvarez (no. 48), infielder Ronny Mauricio (no. 65), and right-hander Matthew Allan (no. 98) round out the Mets’ inclusions, and there’s plenty to be excited about regarding this trio.
Alvarez, 19, was a high-profile international signing of the Mets in 2018 ($2.7 million) out of Venezuela. In 2019, Alvarez hit .462/.548/.846 with two homers and four doubles in seven games in the Gulf Coast League before ascending to Kingsport (Rookie Ball), where he hit .282/.377/.443 with five home runs and six doubles in 151 plate appearances.
Mauricio, 19, jumped up one spot from no. 66 in BA’s rankings last season. After making significant strides in his first professional season (..273/.304/.410 over 247 plate appearances with the GCL Mets and Kingsport in 2018), the Dominican product was thrust into the South Atlantic League at a 3.5-year average age difference.
Over 504 plate appearances with Single-A Columbia, Mauricio held his own, hitting .268/.307/.357 with four homers, 20 doubles, and 99 strikeouts (wholly encouraging versus such an advanced level of pitching).
With the recent trades of Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez to Cleveland, Mauricio’s obviously been elevated in the Mets’ organizational depth chart. But with Francisco Lindor possibly settling in at shortstop in Flushing for the next decade or so, that could leave Mauricio blocked. Something to keep an eye on, for sure.
Allan, also 19, was the team’s third-round pick (89th overall) in 2019, signing for an above-slot $2.5 million to secure the right-hander’s services after a commitment to the University of Florida.
Though he’s logged just 10.1 professional innings (14 strikeouts, five walks, three earned runs, 1.45 WHIP over six appearances/five starts with GCL and Short-Season Brooklyn) due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Seminole, Florida product’s pedigree (high-90s fastball, highly regarded curveball) afforded him all the buzz necessary for incorporation into the BA’s rankings.
These three — as well as right-hander J.T. Ginn, third baseman Brett Baty, and center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong — make up the cream of the Mets decimated farm system crop.
The team’s new front office — lead by team president Sandy Alderson and general manager Jared Porter — has made it a point this offseason to refrain from making the same missteps as their predecessors in trading away high-level prospects.
One would imagine — unless something unforeseeable comes down the pike — this group will be supplying the homegrown excitement for years to come.
