Each year at 213 we look through the Non-Roster Invitees to spring training and get to know them a bit. Are they in camp to get a look at big league hitting/pitching to aid their development? Are the Mets just trying to get a better look at a future rookie? Are they a veteran trying to get back to the major league level? What can we expect from them this season?
Today we look at Nick Meyer, drafted in round 6 in 2018 by the Mets out of California Polytechnic State. Also, Nick Meyer is one of the few players we actually have stats for in 2020! I’m not sure what terminology is correct (either he did this on his own or he got permission from the Mets) but Nick played in an independent league last year – the City of Champions Cup for the Tully Monsters. He got 112 PA’s in over 27 games and hit .247/.357/.360 in a league where he was half a year younger than the average player. That line is much better than his two seasons in the Mets system where over 393 PA’s he hit .193/.256/.235. The highest level he reached was St. Lucie. (He hit well in college, hitting .297/.363/.373)
He’s already been placed on the Cyclones roster – meaning he’ll pick up where he left off in 2019.
So Nick Meyer definitely took a step forward last year, but he’s in a crowded position and its difficult to gauge what his step forward means from a 4-team independent league born out of the pandemic. There are three catchers on the 40-man. Outside of the 40-man, Bruce Maxwell and David Rodriguez are ahead of him on the depth chart.
He’s in Mets camp because they need more catchers in camp, even if there isn’t a path for him to the majors this year. I expect we’ll get a look at him for the first week or so of spring and then he’ll go to the Minors camp once the Mets start making roster cuts.
