Mets Top 50 Prospects for 2026: 5-1 Features Faces of The Future

The final countdown is here! Today we’ll check out the top five prospects in the Mets’ farm system to round out MMO’s top-50 prospect list. The other 45 prospects can be found via links at the end of this article.

The top five consist of an incoming power source, a speed demon, a Canadian Cannon and two Oklahoma State former roommates. We’ll let you guess who is who.

No. 5: Ryan Clifford

B/T: L/L, Age: 22
Height: 6’3, Weight: 200 lbs
Acquired: 2023 Trade with Astros for Justin Verlander
Position: 1B/OF
2025 Stats (AA/AAA): .237/.356/.470 (.826 OPS), 579 PA, 29 HR, 93 RBI, 23 2B, 85 BB, 148 SO
ETA: 2026

Player Profile

Per MLB Pipeline, Clifford holds a 60-plus power grade, making him one of the Mets’ top power-hitting prospects. Coming to the Mets’ organization along with Drew Gilbert for Verlander in 2023, Clifford’s power has been on display ever since making his pro ball debut. While he hasn’t hit for average in the minors, mustering a .242/.370/.453 (.823 OPS), his power has been his calling card. He’s hit 74 home runs and 75 doubles while driving in 252 in 408 minor league games. Clifford produced an elite .257 ISO, signaling his ability to produce extra base hits constantly.

While he carries the ball, he’s extremely prone to the strikeout. He tied with William Lugo for the second-most strikeouts amongst his teammates in 2025 (113), and walked 63 times with Double-A Binghamton. He didn’t fare much better in 34 games with Syracuse, striking out 35 times. However, his walk rate slightly improved to 15.5%, up from 14.4%.

The 22-year-old saw more time than ever at first base in 2025 after playing predominantly in the outfield throughout his career. With the first base spot flexible between Brett Baty and Jorge Polanco, Clifford can find space on the 2026 roster at some point. As mentioned, he played 34 games with Syracuse in 2025, hitting .219/.359/.395 with five home runs and 18 RBIs. Before he can debut, he needs more at-bats at the level.

A key for Clifford in 2026 is to continue working on decreasing his strikeout percentage. He’s on the right path, starting his career with strikeout percentages around 36.4% in his first go-around in the Mets’ organization back in 2023. He ended his 2025 campaign with a 25.6% strikeout percentage between Binghamton and Syracuse.

Standout Stat

Clifford led all Eastern League batters in home runs (24), while hitting the second-most homers among all Double-A players in 2025 (Twins prospect Kala’i Rosario hit 25).

No. 4: A.J. Ewing

B/T: L/R Age: 21
Height: 5’10, Weight: 160 lbs
Acquired: Fourth round of 2023 MLB Draft (NYM)
Position: OF/2B
2025 Stats (A/A+/AA): .315/.401/.429 (.830 OPS), 564 PA, 3 HR, 55 RBI, 26 2B, 10 3B, 70 SB, 68 BB, 105 SO
ETA: 2027

Player Profile

The Mets selected A.J. Ewing with a compensation pick in 2023 thanks to … Jacob deGrom signing with the Texas Rangers.

Simply put, A.J. Ewing is a hitting machine. The 21-year-old dominated in 2025 and was rewarded for his hard work, starting the season with Single-A St. Lucie and ending the campaign with Double-A Binghamton. Between three levels, Ewing hit an absurd .315/.401/.429 (.830 OPS) with three home runs, 55 RBIs, 26 doubles, 10 triples, and an absurd 70 steals.
There’s plenty to note on Ewing, but what stands out most about his game is the ability to steal bases. On an 80-scale, MLB Pipeline gave Ewing a 70-plus grade for his run game, on par with MLB’s No. 1 prospect Konnor Griffin (Ewing came in at No. 97 overall on MLB’s prospect list). With St. Lucie, Ewing stole 14 bases in 16 attempts, 44 bases in 51 attempts with Brooklyn, and 12 bases in 14 attempts with Binghamton. That’s 70 steals in 124 games.

While he’s never going to hit 20 home runs (although if he did, he might unlock true five-tool status), Ewing can pretty much do it all. He profiles as a typical leadoff guy who likes to use all sides of the field to get on base, then lets his legs do most of the work the rest of the way.

Impressively, Ewing cut his strikeout percentage by ten points in a year, ending 2024 with a 28.5% strikeout percentage and 2025 with one near 18%. Of slight concern, his walk rate percentage took a drastic dip once he reached Binghamton (5.3% from 13.1% in Brooklyn, from 18.5% in St. Lucie), so that is something to keep an eye on as he starts the year with Binghamton.

On the defensive side, the former second baseman was able to easily transition to center field thanks to his innate speed and 60-plus fielding grade.

Standout Stat

Ewing led the entire Mets organization with 70 steals, and stole the fifth-most bases amongst all minor league players in 2025. He also led the South Atlantic League (High-A) in batting average, hitting .288/.387/.388 (.775 OPS) in 78 games with the Brooklyn Cyclones.

No. 3: Jonah Tong, RHP

B/T: R/R, Age: 22
Height: 6’1, Weight: 180 lbs
Acquired: Seventh round of 2022 MLB Draft (NYM)
Position: SP
2025 Minors Stats (AA/AAA): 22 GS, 1.43 ERA, 10-5, 113.2 IP, 179 K, 47 BB
2025 MLB Stats: 5 GS, 7.71 ERA, 2-3, 18.2 IP, 22 K, 9 BB
ETA: Debuted August 29, 2025

Player Profile

The Canadian Cannon, AKA Jonah Tong, has been on a whirlwind journey ever since the Mets drafted him in 2022. He squarely made a name for himself in 2024 after skyrocketing through the Mets’ minor league system. Between A/A+/AA, Tong pitched to a 3.03 ERA in 25 games (23 GS), compiling a 6-4 record across 113 innings pitched. He struck out 160 batters and posted a 2.33 FIP and 2.88 xFIP.

Tong took things to another dimension in 2025, posting an insane 1.43 ERA across 113.2 innings of work (22 GS), nearly identical to his 2024 appearances. However, in 2025, he struck out 179 and posted a 1.68 FIP and 2.16 xFIP.

Things took a bit of a dip for Tong when he made his MLB debut. While he didn’t qualify statistically, he ranked below average in xERA (4.96), xBA (.261), chase percentage (22.0%), whiff percentage (22.1%) and walk percentage (10.3%). He was slightly above average in strikeout percentage (25.3%). For reference, batters posted a .148 average against him between Binghamton and Syracuse in 2025, and a .308 average with the Mets. In addition, he posted a 40.3% strikeout percentage and 10.6% walk percentage in the minors in 2025.

There are questions about whether the Mets rushed his debut; after all, Tong only made two starts in Triple-A before his debut (two scoreless starts). He’ll start 2025 in Syracuse, where he’ll be better able to develop his pitches more. His repertoire includes his four-seamer, which he throws more than 50% of the time, a Vulcan changeup (second-most used pitch), a slider and a new cutter he’s been working on to use all planes of the strike zone. Before 2026, he was an extreme vertical pitcher, utilizing the north and south zones. The hope with the cutter is to utilize the east and west planes as well to better deceive batters.

For example, hitters obliterated Tong’s four-seamer, which he threw 57.4% of the time in 2025. They hit .356 against it with a .275 xBA, .600 SLG and .509 xSLG. His Vulcan changeup was by far his best pitch, holding hitters to a .227 BA, .234 xBA, .364 SLG and .372 xSLG.

Before Tong can rejoin the Mets, he needs to finesse his repertoire and work on his command (walks have always been an issue for him).

Standout Stat

Tong obliterated the minors in 2025, leading all minor leaguers in strikeouts (179) and ERA (1.43) during his time with Binghamton and Syracuse. As a result, he was named 2025 MLB Pipeline Pitching Prospect of the Year.

No. 2: Carson Benge, OF

B/T: L/R, Age: 23
Height: 6’1, Weight: 184 lbs
Acquired: First round of 2024 MLB Draft (NYM)
Position: OF
2025 Stats (A+/AA/AAA): .281/.385/.472 (.857 OPS), 519 PA, 15 HR, 73 RBI, 25 2B, 7 3B, 22 SB, 68 BB, 92 SO
ETA: 2026

Player Profile

Carson Benge, welcome to The Show! The 23-year-old made the Mets’ 2026 Opening Day roster and MLB debut, and his strong spring is just one small reason why. In his first full year of professional ball in 2025, Benge posted a .281/.385/.472 (.857 OPS) and hit 15 home runs, 25 doubles and seven triples across three levels. He drove in 73, while striking out 92 times and walking 68 times. Benge’s 13.1% walk percentage would have placed him in the 93rd percentile (good for 17th best in baseball in 2025 with the likes of Ian Happ, Geraldo Perdomo and Corey Seager).

While he excelled in A+ and AA ball (168 wRC+ and 184 wRC+, respectively), Benge posted a 53 wRC+ in 24 games with Triple-A Syracuse. For reference, he played in eight more games with Double-A Binghamton, where his wRC+ was over 130 points higher. While fatigue might play a role, Benge showed no signs of struggling to hit big league pitchers in spring training. He hit .366/.435/.439 over 14 games with a 140 wRC+.

A former two-way player who immediately committed to hitting, Benge possesses plus-plus hit and arm skills, making him a natural right fielder, while also displaying above-average run ability. While he has some pop, Benge’s greatest asset is going the other way. As a former pitcher, he’s able to unload from right field, dialing in at 96 mph, which would have ranked in the 99th percentile in 2025 per Baseball Savant.

Standout Stat

Benge was named the Mets’ Minor League Player of the Year in 2025 in his first full season of professional baseball.

No. 1: Nolan McLean, RHP

B/T: R/R Age: 24
Height: 6’2, Weight: 214 lbs
Acquired: Third round of 2023 MLB Draft (NYM)
Position: SP
2025 Minors Stats (AA/AAA): 21 G/18 GS, 2.45 ERA, 8-5, 113.2 IP, 127 K, 50 BB
2025 MLB Stats: 8 GS, 2.06 ERA, 5-1, 48.0 IP, 57 K, 16 BB
ETA: Debuted on August 16, 2025

Player Profile

Nolan McLean was able to go under the radar for so long. After splitting time between Binghamton and Syracuse in 2025, where he posted a 2.45 ERA in 113.2 innings with 127 strikeouts, McLean made his debut with the Mets and was somehow even better.

After posting a 10.06 K/9 rate, 3.96 BB/9 rate and 3.66 FIP in the minors, McLean went on to pitch to a 10.69 K/9 rate, 3.00 BB/9 rate and 2.97 FIP. While hitters averaged .191 off him in the minors, major league hitters mustered a .200 average against the Mets’ No. 1 prospect. Even though he didn’t qualify, the 24-year-old would have landed in the 91st percentile in strikeout percentage (30.3%), better than Paul Skenes‘ 29.5%. In addition, his +8 pitching run value would have been second-best among starters behind Clay Holmes.

McLean possesses one of the most versatile pitch arsenals in the game, throwing a kitchen sink of a sinker, sweeper, curveball, four-seamer, changeup and cutter. Hitters did most damage on his sweeper, batting .361 with an xBA of .380, .528 SLG and .601 xSLG. His other pitches tell a different story, with the curveball proving lethal; batters mustered a .074 BA against McLean’s pitch with a xBA of .076. He threw this pitch around 15% of the time.

His number one pitch, his sinker, helps produce groundouts (60.2% in 2025), and McLean will continue to rely on that pitch as his bread and butter.

Standout Stat

McLean became the first Met in franchise history to win his first three starts, defeating the Mariners, Braves and Phillies to complete the feat.

Previous rankings: 50-46, 45-41, 40-36, 35-31, 30-26, 25-21, 20-16, 15-11, 10-6

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