Minors Weekly Report: Carson Benge Continues to Rake

There’s no hotter hitter in the Mets’ system, and perhaps all of the minor leagues, than 2024 first-round pick and Binghamton Rumble Ponies outfielder Carson Benge. Benge has been everything the Mets could have hoped for and more in his development.

In his latest week at the Double-A level, Benge went 9-for-20 with three home runs, a triple, and five RBIs while stealing a base and scoring six runs. In 26 games since his promotion, the 22-year-old has a 1.132 OPS.

Let’s take a look at the rest of the minor leagues.

Triple-A

The Syracuse Mets had yet another easy series win, taking five of six games from the Buffalo Bisons in their most recent series. The Mets just continue to roll and are now 26-7 in the second half of the season, taking their overall record to 57-51.

Hayden Senger had a fantastic week at the plate, leading the team with three home runs and five RBIs while going 4-for-14. He walked twice, stole a base, and scored three runs. Senger’s great week raised his season OPS to .689.

Luke Ritter and Jared Young also had a great series, with each tallying two home runs. Ritter finished 6-for-19, scoring six runs, while Young went 6-for-25 and added a couple of doubles. Ritter’s OPS is slowly creeping up, now at .744 for the year, while Young has been great all year and sits with a .926 OPS.

Yonny Hernández and Pablo Reyes did a lot of hitting, with Hernández leading the team with eight hits in 16 at-bats, while Reyes went 6-for-17. Hernández has been solid in 62 games for Syracuse, owning an .850 OPS, while Reyes has a .962 OPS with Syracuse.

Brandon Sproat looked dominant on the mound once again, tossing five scoreless innings with nine strikeouts. It’s been a complete turnaround for Sproat, who has a 0.55 ERA in his last six starts with just two runs allowed in that span. For the season, he still sports a 4.07 ERA.

Nolan McLean also looked great, allowing two runs over six innings with six strikeouts. McLean’s effort lowered his Triple-A ERA to 3.01 through 14 appearances.

Paul Blackburn made another rehab start and he looked solid. Blackburn went 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs with three strikeouts. Blackburn, who the Mets reportedly shopped around before the trade deadline, is nearing a potential return to the major league team.

Double-A

The Binghamton Rumble Ponies defeated the Harrisburg Senators four games to two in their latest series. The Rumble Ponies remain dominant with a 23-10 record in the second half of the season and a 68-32 record overall.

In addition to Carson Benge’s heroics at the plate, Chris Suero looked good by going 3-for-11 with a double, a home run, and three walks. Suero has been solid since being promoted to the Double-A level, recording an .811 OPS in 11 games.

Nick Lorusso also had a solid series, going 4-for-13 with two doubles, two walks, and three runs. Lorusso owns a .767 OPS on the year.

Jack Wenninger delivered the best start of the week for the Rumble Ponies, tossing six scoreless innings with three strikeouts. Wenninger allowed six hits and three walks in the effort but was able to keep any runs from scoring. Through 20 starts with Binghamton, Wenninger owns a 2.84 ERA.

R.J. Gordon also had a brilliant start, allowing one run over seven innings with six strikeouts. Through four games (three starts) at the Double-A level, Gordon owns a 3.86 ERA.

Jonah Tong had an interesting start. He didn’t allow any runs and struck out eight, which is typical of him, but he was only able to make it through three innings as he walked five batters. Still, Tong’s ERA lowered to 1.66 through 18 starts. He’s nearly been untouchable.

High-A

The Brooklyn Cyclones continue to slide, dropping five of six games to the Jersey Shore BlueClaws last week. After a great first half of the season, the Cyclones are just 14-22 in the second half of the season. Overall, they are 60-42.

Boston Baro had the best week of any Cyclones hitter, going 7-for-18 with a double, three walks, and six stolen bases. He also didn’t strike out and scored four runs. Despite a .634 OPS for the season, Baro owns a six-game hitting streak and 15 hits over his last nine games.

A.J. Ewing also had an excellent week, going 8-for-21 with three walks and a stolen base. Through 73 games at the High-A level, Ewing’s OPS sits at .802.

Marco Vargas, who has been in a deep slump, broke out with a 6-for-16 week. Vargas walked six times and stole four bases while scoring four runs. It’s been a struggle in Brooklyn for Vargas, who owns a .624 OPS at the level.

Will Watson had a scoreless start, not allowing a run over 5 1/3 innings of work. Watson walked four batters, but struck out five to lower his High-A ERA through 10 appearances (nine starts) to 1.99.

Noah Hall also had a scoreless start, but he only went 3 1/3 innings with a hit and four walks. Hall also struck out six to lower his ERA to 2.23.

Brendan Girton made a pair of starts, totaling just 5 1/3 innings. He allowed two runs (one earned) and struck out five. Girton’s ERA on the year lowered to 2.41.

Low-A

The St. Lucie Mets played two shorter series with the Jupiter Hammerheads and the Daytona Tortugas. St. Lucie swept Jupiter over three games, outscoring them 33-15. Against Daytona, St. Lucie won three of four games to record a 6-1 record for the week. The Mets are 26-10 in the second half of the season and 60-41 overall.

Randy Guzman, recently promoted from rookie ball, was on fire all week. Guzman went 11-for-25 with five doubles, a home run, and a team-leading eight RBIs, also scoring five runs. Through nine games with the St. Lucie Mets, Guzman owns a 1.024 OPS.

Yonatan Henriquez also remains hot, as he went 7-for-20 with three doubles, seven walks, and three stolen bases. Henriquez has a .707 OPS for the year, but a .927 OPS in his last 21 games.

Several 2025 Mets draft picks or rookie signees, including first-rounder Mitch Voit and third-rounder Antonio Jimenez, made their professional debuts. Voit and Jimenez struggled in small sample sizes, as did AJ Salgado, an undrafted free agent.

Chase Meggers, an undrafted catcher out of Oregon, went 3-for-5, while John Bay from Austin Peay State went 3-for-9 with a triple.

Irving Cota had the best start for the St. Lucie Mets, striking out three over five scoreless innings. Cota owns a 3.99 ERA in 19 appearances (eight starts) with the Mets this year.

Hunter Hodges, who received a promotion to Brooklyn, made a pair of great appearances out of the bullpen. In total, Hodges tossed 4 1/3 scoreless innings while striking out eight. He had a 2.37 ERA in 29 appearances at the time of his promotion.

DSL Mets

The DSL Mets Orange went 2-3 this past week to move to 25-20 after 45 games. The DSL Mets Blue had an even tougher week, going 0-5 to move to 16-29 through their first 45 games.

Elian Peña had a really strong week at the plate for the Orange squad, going 9-for-19 with a double, a triple, two walks, three stolen bases, and five runs scored. Peña also drove in two runs. He’s been excellent of late, owning an .858 OPS. On the mound, Osiris Calvo had an excellent start of five scoreless innings. He owns a 1.67 ERA through nine appearances (seven starts).

For the Blue squad, Yovanny Rodriguez, who was the Mets’ top international signing in 2024, looked excellent. He went 7-for-14 with two doubles, a home run, two RBIs, and four runs scored. He’s had an excellent season, owning a .973 OPS through 32 games. On the mound, Luis Sotillo tossed four scoreless innings with three strikeouts in his lone start. It was his first appearance for the Blue squad after recording a 5.14 ERA in eight starts with the Orange squad.

Organizational Leaders

Batting

AVG – Carson Benge (BRK/BNG) – .323

OPS – Carson Benge (BRK/BNG) – .969

HR – Ryan Clifford (BNG) – 21

SB – A.J. Ewing (STL/BRK) – 56

Pitching

ERA – Jonah Tong (BNG) – 1.66

SO – Jonah Tong (BNG) – 146

WHIP – Zach Thornton (BRK/BNG) – 0.812

Players of the Week

Offense – Carson Benge, OF Binghamton

Carson Benge has been a revelation in Double-A, needing no adjustment period to start mashing. His level of play has made it clear he’s the center fielder of the future in Queens, and if he keeps playing like this, it might not be too long until he takes over that position.

Pitching – Jack Wenninger, P Binghamton

Jack Wenninger has been awesome for the Rumble Ponies after a 2024 season in which he had a combined 4.30 ERA between Low-A and High-A. The 2023 sixth-rounder has cemented himself as one of the more exciting young arms in a Mets system that is full of them.

Upcoming Schedule – August 5-10

• Triple-A Syracuse: vs. Charlotte
• Double-A Binghamton: @ Somerset
• High-A Brooklyn: @ Hudson Valley
• Low-A St. Lucie: @ Tampa

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