Minors Weekly Report: Jonah Tong Delivers Another Hitless Performance

Jonah Tong remained unhittable this week—literally. Over five innings in his start for the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, Tong didn’t allow a hit, walked three, and struck out 11 batters. There aren’t enough words to describe just how impressive Tong has been. Over 10 starts for Binghamton, he owns a 2.02 ERA with 83 strikeouts in 49 innings.

In other Mets minor league news, the team’s four full-season affiliates came back down to Earth a bit after they combined to go 21-2 last week.

Triple-A

The Syracuse Mets lost their last series by dropping four of six games to the Buffalo Bisons. Offense wasn’t the issue, as the Mets scored 42 runs in the six games, including 18 in a shutout win. The 2-4 series record drops Syracuse to 29-34, which has them in seventh place in the 10-team International League East division.

Six Mets hit home runs, including David Villar, who led the team with two. Villar, who is a few weeks into his tenure in the Mets organization, recorded four hits and now owns an .844 OPS in seven games with Syracuse.

Luke Ritter had another breakout week, recording the highest slugging percentage on the team for the series. Ritter went 6-for-19 with two doubles, a home run, and three walks. He was also tied for the team lead with six runs scored. Ritter is really starting to turn it on, owning a .992 OPS in his last 17 games to raise his season OPS to .724.

Drew Gilbert led the team with six RBIs in the series, also recording a double, a triple, and a grand slam. Despite this, Gilbert went just 5-for-23 and had a .699 OPS in the series. His OPS on the season is now .655.

Brandon Sproat looked phenomenal against Buffalo, striking out four over six shutout innings. Sproat now has a 2.25 ERA in his last three starts but still owns a 5.33 ERA on the season. He’s trending the right way.

Frankie Montas made two rehab starts as he looks to work his way to the major league team for his Mets debut, but neither start went well for the longtime major leaguer. In 7 2/3 innings, Montas allowed eight runs, including a whopping six home runs. The stats aren’t pretty, but the most important thing is Montas shakes the rust off and feels healthier each time he pitches.

Double-A

The Binghamton Rumble Ponies continued their rollicking start to the season with a series win over the Somerset Patriots, grabbing five of the six games. Binghamton has built a formidable lead in the Eastern League Northeast Division, sitting at 38-18 with an 8.5 game lead.

Ryan Clifford and Kevin Parada each hit two home runs in the series, leading the team. Clifford’s home runs were most of his damage, as he recorded just three hits in the series, but he also walked eight times while striking out twice. Parada, meanwhile, did more damage with the bat by recording six hits. He also walked four times and stole a base. Clifford maintains a solid .792 OPS while Parada’s is creeping up and sits at .634.

Jett Williams played really well in the series, even after getting hit on the helmet with a fastball. He finished the week with six hits, including two doubles, and also had five walks and a stolen base. Williams owns a stellar .849 OPS.

D’Andre Smith also had a fantastic week, leading the team with seven RBIs. Smith added three doubles, a triple, a home run, three walks, and a stolen base. Smith, whose RBI total jumped from four to 11, now owns a .747 OPS.

In addition to what Jonah Tong did this week, Zach Thornton added yet another gem to what has been a brilliant season, allowing one run over 6 2/3 innings while striking out eight. Through seven starts in Binghamton, Thornton owns a 2.13 ERA. In 11 starts total, he owns a 1.53 ERA.

High-A

The Brooklyn Cyclones cooled off a bit, splitting their series with the Wilmington Blue Rocks. At 39-18, they retain a tight lead in the South Atlantic League North division, up 1.5 games.

Offense was hard to come by for the Cyclones, but Carson Benge still had a solid week. Benge led the team in several categories, including hits (six), doubles (three), runs (five) and tied for RBIs (four). Benge also recorded a stolen base.

Despite poor performances with the bats, the Cyclones still did some damage on the basepaths. Marco Vargas led the team with five steals, while A.J. Ewing and Chris Suero swiped four bags each. Ewing extended his organizational lead in stolen bases as he now has 41 in 51 games.

Jonathan Santucci delivered arguably the best start of the week for the Cyclones, continuing his resurgence after a rough start to the year. Santucci struck out five over 5 1/3 innings, lowering his ERA to 4.32. His ERA over his last four starts is 0.44.

Nate Dohm and Joel Díaz also delivered solid starts. Dohm struck out six over five scoreless innings while Díaz allowed one run in five innings. Dohm now has a 2.51 ERA in Brooklyn and a 2.95 ERA overall, while Díaz lowered his ERA to 3.83.

Sean Manaea made his first rehab start of the year as he also looks to work his way back to the major league team for his 2025 debut. Manaea struggled, allowing four runs (three earned) in 1 2/3 innings. He also hit a batter and struck out two. Like with Montas, the most important thing for Manaea is feeling comfortable and healthy, and the Mets will take their time with his rehab as their rotation continues to excel.

Low-A

The St. Lucie Mets lost four of their six games against the Dunedin Blue Jays, recording just 15 runs in what was a quiet series. The Mets are now 30-26 and own a four-game lead in the Florida State League East division.

Yohairo Cuevas stood out for the Mets, tying Colin Houck for the team lead with six hits while also leading the team with four runs. Cuevas raised his OPS on the year to .755.

Houck also had a solid week, going 6-for-17 with a double, two walks, and a stolen base. Houck has been a lot better lately than he was earlier in the season. Going back to May 2, Houck has an .853 OPS in 29 games and owns a .771 OPS for the season.

In his first start with the St. Lucie Mets after starting the year with the FCL Mets, Jose Chirinos delivered by striking out seven over 4 2/3 scoreless innings. Chirinos has made just five appearances (four starts) this year across these two levels, but he’s looked fantastic. He currently owns a 1.80 ERA.

Edgar Moreta continued his great season, striking out eight and allowing one run in 5 2/3 innings. Moreta lowered his ERA in St. Lucie to 3.27.

Franklin Gomez also shined in his start, striking out six over 3 2/3 hitless innings. Gomez owns a 3.15 ERA in six appearances this year, looking better than he did last year when he accumulated a 4.28 ERA.

FCL Mets

The FCL Mets had a good week, going 3-1 to improve their record to 9-13. They are tied in last place with the FCL Marlins in the Florida Complex League East division.

• Randy Guzman played great in three games, recording two home runs and five RBIs. The outfielder has a .934 OPS in 19 games.
• Jeffry Rosa also had a good week, recording a home run in nine at-bats. Rosa owns an .807 OPS in 14 games.
• Jace Hampson, the Mets’ 18th-round pick in 2024, allowed one run in four innings in his start. He owns a 2.77 ERA in five appearances.
• Jose Guevara also looked great, allowing an unearned run in three innings in his start. He has a rough 9.00 ERA in five appearances.

DSL Mets

The DSL Mets Orange went 2-3 this past week, putting them at 3-3 on the young season. The DSL Mets Blue, meanwhile, went 0-5 and are now 0-6 to start their season.

Six games into his professional career, Elian Peña has yet to collect a hit. The highly touted international prospect is 0-for-17 with two RBIs, two walks, and three stolen bases.

Yunior Amparo (1.375 OPS) and Alex Acosta (1.121 OPS), both playing for DSL Mets Blue, have been impressive in a very small sample size. Osiris Calvo (0 ER, 3 1/3 IP) and Deivy Victora (1 ER, 5 2/3 IP), both pitching for DSL Mets Orange, have also impressed.

Organizational Leaders

Batting

• AVG – A.J. Ewing (STL/BRK) – .34
• OPS – Jacob Reimer (BRK) – .96
• HR – Jon Singleton (SYR) – 1
• SB – A.J. Ewing (STL/BRK) – 41

Pitching

• ERA – Zach Thornton (BRK/BNG) – 1.53
• SO – Jonah Tong (BNG) – 83
• WHIP – Zach Thornton (BRK/BNG) – 0.699

Players of the Week

Offense – Luke Ritter, IF/OF Syracuse

Offense was hard to come by this week for the Mets’ minor league affiliates. Ritter didn’t have a jaw-dropping set of games, but he did enough to earn offensive player of the week. Ritter started the season off on a poor note after a strong 2024, but he’s rebounded nicely recently.

Pitching – Jonah Tong, P Binghamton

Jonah Tong is dominating pretty much every time he takes the mound. He’s a strikeout artist whose WHIP is just north of 1.000. He’s allowed 11 earned runs in 10 starts this season and is making his case to move on to Syracuse.

Upcoming Schedule – June 10-15

• Triple-A Syracuse: @ Scranton/Wilkes-Barre
• Double-A Binghamton: @ Richmond
• High-A Brooklyn: vs. Asheville
• Low-A St. Lucie: @ Daytona

The post Minors Weekly Report: Jonah Tong Delivers Another Hitless Performance appeared first on Metsmerized Online.