213 Miles From Shea

In November the Mets added to their minor league catching depth by signing Johnny Monell to a minor league contract with an invitation to Spring Training. The Mets are going to go in 2015 with d’Arnaud as the starter and Recker as the backup. I think it is safe to assume that if anything happened to d’Arnaud that would impact his playing time for a significant amount of time, the Mets would call on Plawecki. If anything happens to Recker though, that position is up for grabs to some degree.

So Monell will be coming to camp to compete for the back up for the back up position. From the Bronx, Johnny was drafted in 2005 by the Giants, drafted by the Mets in 2006 and drafted again by the Giants in 2007. 2013 was the only time he saw some major league playing time recording a hit, scoring 2 runs in 8 AB’s. Later his contract was purchased by the Orioles. The following year, 2014, his contract was purchased by the Dodgers.

In the minors he is a career .264 hitter with a .347 OBP and a .448 SLG, whichisn’t bad for a catcher. Last year he hit .238 with a .301 OBP and a .364 SLG, which was a significant drop from his previous slash line of .275/.364/.494.

For the Mets, Monell is useful to have in the system. If something happens to Recker, it wouldn’t be wise to go to Plawecki. If d’Arnaud needs to miss limited time, it may not be worth it to bring Plawecki up. Monell provides an interesting solution, as long as he gets on the 40 man, which currently only has Recker and d’Arnaud.

Gabriel Ynoa, 21 years old, is a RHP who has been in the Mets system since 2010. Since that time his stock has bounced around, mainly because the Mets system in terms of pitchers has changed a lot since 2010.

Anyway, he has pitched 5 seasons with the Mets and last year he spent considerable time at AA, so he is getting closer. Over those 5 years he has posted a 38-16 record with a 3.00 ERA while pitching 488.2 innings with a 1.097 WHIP, 6.2 K/9, 5.37 K/BB. Statistically speaking, 2012 and 2013 were his best seasons as he pitched a 2.23 and a 2.72 ERA respectively with a low level WHIP.

The following year, last year, when he moved up to St. Lucie and Binghamton he posted a 4.07 ERA over 148.0 innings with a 1.311 WHIP, 6.4 K/9 and a 4.24 K/BB. So the good news is kept up a positive K/BB ratio. He is demonstrating that he is not a top of a line starter, but that’s not really what was expected seriously Ynoa. He is now looking like an intriguing back of the rotation, long man option. In a system stocked with arms, there isn’t the need for Ynoa to be a frontline starter (although that would be nice). This year he was given a C+ ranking at Minor League Ball, and is considered to be the Mets 19th best prospect.

Wuilmer Becerra should sound familiar as he was the additional player in the R.A. Dickey trade when he was only 18. Last year at the age of 19 he earned a ranking of C+ from Minor League Ball with the accolade of “one of the highest ceiling bats in the system.”

In his three seasons he has played in 121 games across two seasons in the Gulf Coast League (two organizations) and one season in the Appalachian League with 412 AB’s, .272 BA, .352 OBP and a .388 SLG. Last season he had 207 ABs over 58 G batting .300, a .351 OBP, and a .469 SLG. Over those ABs he had 62 hits, 19 extra-base hits. 10 doubles, 2 triples and 7 homers. Last season was the first time the power started to show for Becerra as he develops into his frame. This upcoming season will be important, can he replicate the the power he displayed last year at a higher level? I was high on Becerra when we got him in the trade, but that was only because I was trying to make the R.A. Dickey trade seem like a lopsided monster in my head. Let’s see what he can do next year!

Robert Whalen, who will be 21 next year, is a RHP the Mets drafted in the 12th round of the 2012 draft. Minor League Ball ranks him as the 14th best prospect giving him a C+ ranking.

In 3 seasons he is 12-4 with a 1.89 ERA over 27 games, 24 starts and 143.0 innings. Last year he was 9-2 over 14 games, 12 starts with a 1.94 ERA pitching 69.2 innings with a 0.990 WHIP, 8.1 K/9, 3.00 K/BB ratio.

Looking at just his stats, his WHIP and K/9 are incredibly impressive. He did most of the work at Savannah last year. His next year is going to be important in determining how he develops considering he missed the majority of last season due to an infection in his hand. Can he pitch more than ~70 innings in a season and still keep his numbers? If Savannah is more of a pitching park, what happens when he goes to more of an even park?  If anything he is intriguing.

The Mets have an interesting system at lower levels with some interesting players. One way to guarantee not to get a ton of attention from the fan base and the media is to play third base, thanks to a certain generational player at the major league level.

Jhoan Urena is on the cusp of national attention. The third basemen from the Dominican Republic will be 21 next season. Over his first three seasons he has spent time in the Dominican Republic Summer League, Gulf Coast League and the New York Penn League. During that time he has played in 186 games, 702 AB’s with a .292 BA, .345 OBP, and .409 SLG.

Last season he hit .300 with a.356 OBP and a .431 SLG in Brooklyn. Over his 85 hits he had 20 doubles, a triple and 5 homers, his most homers in any season but not statistically significant compared to his AB totals. The question for him, like most players his age, is how does that power develop? He has been able to hit for average and moderate power at the lower levels, but what happens as he starts to grow into his frame? Minor League Ball ranked him as the #10 prospect. I’m curious to see how he starts to hit next season as he starts to move up the rankings. The rumblings are that Savannah is another minor league ball park where power numbers tend to take a dive (re: Dominic Smith).

It is easy to focus on the Mets top arms, because they have so many, however a new player is starting to rise up on the lists: Marcos Molina.

Molina, who will be 20 years old next season, is a RHP from the Dominican Republic. Baseball America this year ranked him #9, and the first pitcher after Rafael Montero. Minor League Ball ranked him #8, and also the first pitcher after Rafael Montero. Minor League Ball ranked him a B-/B rating, stating that he garnered support after an impressive month in Brooklyn.

Overall in the minors he is 16-8 with a 3.07 ERA over 37 games, 31 starts with 184.2 innings of work. Last year was the year though he really broke out in Brooklyn going 7-3 over 12 starts and 76.0 innings with a 1.78 ERA, 0.842 WHIP and a 5.06 K/BB ratio.

Scouts at Minor League Ball say he needs to develop his breaking pitches. He’s gaining attention right now really on the very impressive numbers he had in Brooklyn which are just not talked about due to Syndergaard/Matz/Montero in the system. As those three leave, more eyes will be on Molina. If he can put up a statistically impressive season at a higher level this year, expect him to be a household name next fall.