Five Mets Crack Baseball Prospectus’ Top 101 List

Five Mets prospects cracked Baseball Prospectus‘ annual Top 101 list, which released for the 2025 season Tuesday morning. The group is led by starting pitcher Brandon Sproat, who rode his dominant 2024 season to the 39th spot on the list. Closely following was Jett Williams, who despite missing most of 2024 with injury, came in 48th on the list.

Three more Mets ranked in the 70s, with 2024 first-round selection Carson Benge ranking 71st, Benge’s former Oklahoma State teammate and pitcher Nolan McLean 74th, and possibly the Mets’ breakout prospect of 2024 Jonah Tong right behind him at 75th.

Digging Into the Players

Sproat, 24, dominated for the majority of 2024 campaign to the tune of 1.07 ERA in 25.1 innings for High-A Brooklyn, and a 2.45 ERA over 11 Double-A starts. The former Florida Gator, who the Mets drafted twice, registered a K/9 of 10.1 for the full-season. He struggled following a promotion to Triple-A Syracuse, where he allowed a 7.85 ERA over 26 innings, and most notably, allowing seven homers in seven starts. That performance shut down any chance of him coming up in 2024 as a reliever in September He figures to start the year in Syracuse again, and should be a factor into the Mets’ plans for 2025.

Williams entered 2024 coming off a strong 2023 campaign but never quite got his feet underneath him. In just 33 games, Williams posted a .656 OPS across three levels, with the majority of his time coming in Double-A Binghamton. He played in just 11 games for Binghamton in April before hitting the injured list, and he would not return until August 21. The 2021 first-round selection appeared in 11 games for the Rumble Ponies after returning from the injured list and was promptly promoted to Syracuse following the end of the season. His time in Triple-A produced a 1.079 OPS over six games. 2025 will be his age-21 season.

Carson Benge was the Mets’ first-round selection in 2024, wrapping up his time at Oklahoma State with a 1.109 OPS with 18 homers in his junior year. The lefty was a two-way player in the Big 12 Conference but dropped the pitching upon being drafted by the Mets. Upon signing with the Mets, he joined the A-ball St. Lucie Mets and owned a triple-slash of .273/.420/.436 with a pair of homers and three stolen bases. His glove should play in the corners of the outfield and is one of the can’t-miss prospects the Mets will host in camp this spring. Benge should start the year returning to St. Lucie before making his Brooklyn debut.

Much like Benge, Nolan McLean was a two-way star at Oklahoma State. Drafted by the Mets in the third round of the 2023 draft, McLean struggled mightily on the offensive side of the game with the Mets before dropping hitting all together shortly after the 2024 draft. On the mound, however, he has taken serious strides since being drafted. In 25 starts over 109 innings last year, he pitched to the tune of a 4.27 ERA for Brooklyn and Binghamton, while also striking out 9.5 batters per nine innings. He was able to have his walks more under control than in 2023, lowering his walks from 20 walks in 33.1 total innings in 2023 to 42 over 109 innings, a drop in BB/9 of almost two full walks per nine innings. McLean figures to begin his 2025 campaign in Binghamton.

Jonah Tong was arguably the biggest surprise of the 2024 season, dominating Single-A St. Lucie and striking out everyone in his way. Tong finished the year across St. Lucie and Binghamton with a 3.03 ERA and 160 strikeouts over 113 innings in his first full-season of pitching. Tong began to draw eyes when he did not allow an earned run for his entire tenure with St. Lucie, and continuing his strong play through the remainder of the year. Tong ended the year making a pair of starts for Binghamton, where he figures to begin the 2025 season.

Mets Had a Couple of Other Fringe Candidates

Of note, Baseball Prospectus writer Jarrett Seidler noted that Mets infield prospect Jesus Baez received consideration for the list, more so than any of the trio of prospects the Mets brought in at the 2023 deadline—Luisangel Acuña, Ryan Clifford, and Drew Gilbert.

Baez’s work was limited in 2024 due to injury, but the 19-year old infielder smacked 11 homers, stole nine bases, and owned an OPS of .782 in 72 games, 64 of which were with St. Lucie. Baez hit the injured list on July 5, and was not able to return before the season ended. Baez signed with the Mets for $275,000 as an international free agent in January 2022 and has been one of the more interesting Mets prospects since. Another strong campaign might find him on lists such as this one going forward.

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