213 Miles From Shea

Huge day for Mets fans today – we can actually watch today’s game!

After several days on the road with limited coverage of the Mets, and yesterday’s home game that had no TV or radio coverage, the Mets will be back on our TV sets this afternoon as they take on the Nationals.

The Mets finally got their second win of the spring on Thursday, staying undefeated at home this season. Brett Baty had a huge, two-run homer, his second of the spring (and the only Met with two homers). Clay Holmes had another terrific start and top prospect Ryan Clifford had his first home run of the season. Today the Mets look to another top prospect – Brandon Sproat, as he makes his spring debut.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Brandon Sproat Time! Brandon Sproat enters 2025 as #61 prospect in Baseball America, #39 in Baseball Prospectus and #46 on MLB Pipeline. The three-time drafted, twice by the Mets, pitcher is competing right now for an eventual 2025 call up. Sproat turned heads in Binghamton in 2024 with a 2.45 ERA over 62 1/3 innings with a 11.1 K/9. He is the player to watch this afternoon.
2. José Buttó: Buttó had a clean inning his last time out, no hits, no walks, no anything. He was a massive part of the Mets bullpen last season. The Mets current plans are to keep him in the bullpen. This afternoon, we’ll look to see if stays at one inning of relief or do the Mets stretch him to two.
3. Brandon Nimmo’s first start! Brandon Nimmo is in the lineup today! Nimmo is coming off a year where he battled through injuries but still played in over 150 games with an OPS+ of 107. He hit over 20 home runs for a second season in a row and is still one of the most important bats in the Mets lineup. A major question this season is – where does he hit? Lindor and Soto have the 1 and 2 spots locked up. Alonso makes the most sense after Soto. So is Brandon Nimmo the cleanup hitter? We see that version of Nimmo today!

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets claimed Luis De Los Santos from the Blue Jays in early November to provide infield depth. De Los Santos has been in the Blue Jays system since 2016 and finally made it to the majors this season.

Over 13 games with the Blue Jays, De Los Santos hit .172/.226/.241 with a 34 OPS+. Over that short time, he played at third, first and in left field. He had a pretty solid batting line in Buffalo, hitting .260/.375/.441 which is a pretty sizeable bump from from his career minor league line of .250/.312/.385. He’s played in the minors for eight years and when he takes the field this season, it will be his 600th minor league game played. Because of the chunk of time he’s played, he’s racked up 543 hits.

The Mets claimed De Los Santos for additional infield depth. In the last calendar year, between the majors, minors and Dominican winter ball, De Los Santos has played first, second, third, short and left field. He still has options left and he gives the Mets quite a bit of roster flexibility to get an additional glove on the bench when needed.

As of writing (2/27), he has already played in four spring training games in the first week of games, so the Mets are giving him a real look. There are a lot of players in front of him right now on the depth chart, but given his ability to play a bunch of positions and his options situation, he’ll be called up at some point this season. This spring we will watch for:

• Is his bat close to replacement level?
• How is his defense across the infield? Do the Mets lean to playing him more at one position than any others?

After spring training, I’m curious to see how the Mets play him defensively in the minors. He was mostly at third and short last season, do the Mets keep him there?

The Mets are undefeated in spring training games at home this year, winning one game and tying another. The Mets have lost all four games on the road this spring.

After several days on the road the Mets come back home to Clover Park this afternoon and hopefully that’s enough to push the Mets into the win column. The big story in this afternoon’s game is the return of Clay Holmes to the mound for the Mets. In his spring debut Holmes pitched three perfect innings with three strikeouts. Since his debut the Mets found out that Sean Manaea will start the list on the injured list, moving Holmes up the depth chart for the Mets, possibly competing for an Opening Day Start.

Three Things To Watch For:

1. How deep into the game does Holmes go? In his first game Holmes went the entire three innings that he was scheduled for and looked great, how deep do the Mets have him go the second time through? He is the only pitcher on the Mets to have pitched three innings so far. The Mets also will have to start worrying about exposure to the Astros soon. If Holmes lines up for the first season of the year, he will face the Astros, a team that he could still face again this spring before the start of the season.
2. Duck Power. The Mets traded for Tyler Zuber at the trade deadline last year. Zuber found his way back to baseball after a stint with the Long Island Ducks last year where he had an ERA of 1.59 over six games. This led to the Rays signing him before being traded to the Mets. Tim Healey wrote a nice profile about Zuber this week it was revealed that Zuber also adopted a duck! In his first spring training game he allowed no runs from one hit and three walks while striking out one batter.
3. Brett Baty. Baty has seized opportunities so far this spring. Over three games he is 5-for-8 at the plate with a double and a homer. With Nick Madrigal’s injury, there is an opening for significant major league playing time for Baty. Is this his spring?

Let’s Go Mets!

Ryan Clifford came over to the Mets in the Justin Verlander trade in 2023. At the end of the 2024 season, MLB.com had Drew Gilbert, also acquired in the Verlander trade, and Clifford as ranked #3 and #4 in the Mets system.

Clifford was drafted right out of high school and immediately put up an .815 OPS over his first 25 games in the Astros system. He started 2023 in A ball and hit an absurd .337/.488/.457. When he got bumped to high A the power really started to click and although his OPS dropped from .944 to .903, he started to hit home runs, knocking 16 out over 58 games.

Things got rough for Clifford right after the trade to the Mets. For the rest of the season he hit .188/.307.376 over 32 games in the same league he was playing in with the Astros. This continued in the start of 2024 where he hit .216/.412/.304 with his second tour with the St. Lucie Mets. The Mets promoted him to Binghamton for the last 99 games of the season and Clifford to a strong step back to the numbers he was putting up in the Houston system. He hit .231/.359/.457 with 18 homers.

Clifford has a lot of pop as a 1B/OF and is only 20 years old. When he was in Binghamton last season he was 3.7 years younger than the average player. His second half showed so much promise that some fans were wondering if he could be a 2025 solution for the Mets if they failed to sign Pete Alonso. It’s pretty clear that Clifford needs at least one more year in the minors. A successful 2025 may factor in the Mets decisions about Pete Alonso after this season.

We are still watching for Ryan Clifford to take steps forward right now. How does fair this spring against major league pitchers and players trying to break camp with the team? Specifically we want to see:

• His power continue to develop
• Getting on base. Clifford has had a high OBP (.378) across the minors despite only hitting .245 – that’s because he works the count. He had 95 walks over 130 games last season.
• Dropping strikeouts. Clifford struck out 140 times over 115 games in 2023. In 2025 he struck out 160 times over 130 games

The Mets look to get back in the win column today as they take on the Marlins in Jupiter. Since winning their first game of spring, the Mets tied once and have lost three games.

There were plenty of reasons for Mets fans to be happy with yesterday’s game, despite the score. The Mets had 11 hits in the game including a massive day for Brett Baty who went 2-for-3 at the plate with his first home run this spring. So far over three games Baty is 5-for-8 with two extra-base hits. Has something clicked?

The Mets bats today will look to continue racking up their hits against Max Meyer this afternoon. The Marlins are hoping that Meyer can take the next step forward in 2025 after a season where he made 11 starts with a 5.90 FIP, 80 ERA+ and a 9.8 H/9. There were stretches, especially early in 2024 where Meyer looked close to putting everything together. It’s also been reported that Meyer has added a sweeper to his arsenal this spring. Maybe we’ll see it today!

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Paul Blackburn’s Spring Debut. With injuries to Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas already this spring, Paul Blackburn’s development becomes even more important. Coming into the season he was competing for the sixth rotation spot but now has a significant chance to break came with major league team. Blackburn was acquired by the Mets at the 2024 trade deadline and made five starts before injuries derailed his season. His numbers as a Met (5.18 ERA, 4.69 FIP, 77 ERA+) don’t tell the full story. In three of his starts he allowed three earned runs over 18 innings while striking out 16 batters, scattering 15 hits. In his other two starts he allowed 11 earned runs from 16 hits.
2. Anthony Gose is scheduled to pitch! If you’ve been around the Mets for a while, you’ll recall Anthony Gose as the outfield prospect the Mets could have built a package around in the R.A. Dickey trade back in 2012. In 2021 Gose converted from an outfielder to a pitcher and is coming off of a solid minor league season with a 3.22 ERA and 1.366 WHIP over 44 2/3 innings.
3. Hitting Bombs. The Mets have played in five games this spring and have already hit six home runs. There are five teams who have seven home runs. No one on the Mets has more than one homer this spring. Power hitters like Juan Soto and Jose Siri have already have their first bomb this spring – will anyone else join them today?

Let’s Go Mets!

Chris Williams is a new face in Mets camp this year. Williams was drafted by the Twins in 2018 and has been with their organization ever since, pitching rookie ball all the way to AAA.

The Mets catching chart is thin after Alvarez and Luis Torrens. There is no third catcher listed on the 40-man roster, leaving a fully open roster battle for Kevin Parada, Hayden Senger, Jakson Reetz and Chris Williams this month. So far (2/25) Williams has gone 1-for-3 hitting a home run and striking out twice.

The Mets are taking a chance of Chris Williams because his bat has some pop. Over 481 games in the minor leagues, he has 95 home runs. In 2023 he hit .236/.352/.495 with 21 homers over 95 games. Last season he hit .221/.339/.461 with 17 homers over 88 games. A chunk of last seasons performance came on a hot streak he ended the season with, going 12-for-36 with four home runs over his final 12 games of the season (.333/.455/.694).

If Chris Williams hits this spring, he could fight his way to third on the Mets depth chart, and a spot on the taxi squad that comes up when the Mets feel they need a third catcher. Here’s what we are watching for this spring:

• Does he still have the pop he has shown in the minors? He already has one home run this spring!
• Do Mets pitchers like pitching to him? Who is he catching? Are the Mets trying to get him familiar with anyone?

The wins and losses don’t matter in spring. Breakouts, difficult days and health are the signs of a successful spring. With that as a north star, yesterday was a rough day for the Mets. A couple of hours before the game Carlos Mendoza announced that Nick Madrigal fractured his shoulder and will be out for a long time. Then he dropped that Sean Manaea is dealing with an oblique issue and will likely start the season in the IL. Then Blake Tidwell allowed three runs, including a home run over two innings. The vibes could be better!

It’s a new day in camp, and it’s a great day to get the positive vibes from the first spring training game back. Who will step up today and seize and opportunity?

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Say hello to Austin Warren. The Mets selected Austin Warren off waivers in mid-January. Warren was drafted by the Angels in 2018 and made his major league debut in 2021. He was released after the 2023 season when he signed with the Giants. Since 2021 he has pitched in only 38 major league games with a 3.14 ERA, 3.91 FIP. He has a mid-80’s slider, a mid-90’s sinker, mid-90’s four seamer and a high-80’s cutter.
2. The first player the Mets signed this offseason. The Mets 2024-25 offseason started with the signing of Chris Devenski on a minor league deal with an invitation to major league camp. The Mets are hoping to get the Chris Devenski from early in his career. Over his first two seasons (2016, 2017) he had a 4.6 WAR pitching 110 games (only five starts) with a 2.38 ERA and 168 ERA+. From 2018 through last season he pitched in 193 games with a 5.42 ERA, 81 ERA+ and a -1.8 WAR.
3. Spring Training Legend. The Mets will get to face a Mets spring training legend today – Luis Guillorme. Luis Guillorme is in Astros camp as a non-roster invitee trying to break camp with the team. As a member of the Mets, Luis created two memorable spring training moments. He caught a bat with one hand, like it was nothing, while standing in the dugout. He battled in a 22 pitch at-bat in another game. Last season Guillorme hit .205/.301/.273 with a 64 OPS+ between the Angels, Braves and Diamondbacks.

Let’s Go Mets!

For a fourth season in a row the Mets are welcoming Hayden Senger to major league camp. Drafted in 2018, Senger has played all over the Mets farm system from the Kingsport Mets in the now-defunct rookie league all the way to the Syracuse Mets.

In our 2024 NRI Preview we noted that Senger was a solid hitter in college (.272/.359/.409) and during his first five seasons of minor league ball he hit fine (.236/.328/.359). Things hit a notable snag though in 2023 where he hit .188/.307/.295 while stuck in Binghamton. Senger’s bat bounced back in 2024, hitting .234/.302/.363 with his best stretch happing over 48 games in Syracuse where he hit .252/.323/.401.

Hayden Senger’s situation has always been conditioned by catching prospects around him. The Mets signed Francisco Alvarez one month after drafting Hayden Senger. In 2022 the Mets drafted Kevin Parada who at one point was a top-100 prospect in baseball.

Francisco Alvarez has become the Mets star catcher. Luis Torrens has cemented himself as the backup catcher who also has a reliable bat. Yet, Hayden Senger’s situation has never been as good as it is right now. The Mets do not have third catcher listed on 40-man right now. Kevin Parada has struggled, opening up a path up the depth chart for Senger. The other two catchers in camp have not had tremendous, or any, major league success. If we look at spring training as way for the Mets to figure out the minor league players who will step in at some point this season, Senger has a path to make a statement.

Here’s what we are looking for this spring:

• How is Senger behind the plate defensively? Does he have a better relationship with Mets pitchers being in the system for a number of years?
• Is his bat around replacement level?
• Does he have more positive moments than Jakson Reetz and Chris Williams? If none of the three step up the Mets will almost certainly go find another veteran catcher.

The Mets have a record of 1-1-1 going into the third day of Spring Training games, which is honestly just fun to say. What wasn’t as fun was the games on Sunday. The Mets struggled on the road against the Nationals, allowing five in the first inning. Meanwhile in St. Lucie the Mets ended up tying 1-1, cementing the Mets 1-1-1 record. As always with spring training, there were good performances, poor performances and miscues.

The Mets will try to put the defensive and base running miscues behind them this afternoon against the Cardinals. The bats will get to face a familiar face in Steven Matz, who is about to start his fourth season int St. Louis. Matz is coming off of an injury shortened 2024 where he was dealing back issues.

The slate of pitchers the Mets have on the mound this afternoon is fascinating. Blade Tidwell, who could make his major league debut for the Mets this season, starts things off. José Buttó stepped up in a major way for the 2024 Mets and makes his spring debut this afternoon. According to yesterday’s game notes Huascar Brazobán and Brandon Waddell round out the scheduled piters list. Brazobán is currently on the 40-man roster and is trying to get one of the last available bullpen spots. Waddell is currently in camp on an NRI deal. Should be a fun day in Jupiter!

Three Things To Watch For:

1. Is this Blade Tidwell’s year? Blade Tidwell had a strong stint in Binghamton last season with a 2.41 ERA over 37 1/3 innings. That didn’t exactly carry over to Syracuse where he had a 5.93 ERA over 85 innings. Tidwell just lost his control. He had a 2.7 BB/9 in Binghamton and that ballooned to 5.6 in Syracuse. Today we are looking to see how Tidwell’s control looks early in Spring.
2. José Buttó Repeat? Buttó had a breakout year for the Mets in 2024. As a reliever he had a 2.00 ERA over 36 innings spread over 23 games. This, plus his success as a starter, lead to a 2.2 Baseball Reference WAR, which was fourth best on the team!
3. Brandon Waddell. Brandon Waddell had a cup of coffee in the majors a few seasons ago. When he got released in 2022 he signed a deal with the Doosan Bears and played parts of three seasons in the KBO and CPBL. Last season he had a 3.12 ERA over 14 starts (75 innings) with a 9.00 K/9 and 1.3 BB/9. He doesn’t overpower hitters and was able to finesse his way to success.

Let’s Go Mets!

The Mets have only two catchers on the 40-man roster, so there is an open competition right now to be the “third” catcher if needed. The Mets have brought in four catchers as non-roster invitees to major league camp. Two catchers are current Mets prospects (Kevin Parada, Hayden Senger), one catcher is a former prospect for the Twins and never made it to the majors (Chris Williams). Then there is Jakson Reetz, the only catcher in camp as an NRI with major league experience, even thought it was real brief.

Reetz was a third round draft pick of the Washington Nationals back in 2014. He got into two games with the Nationals in 2021 and was released at the end of the 2021 season. After that he bounced around a bunch of organizations going to the Brewers, Royals (twice) and the Giants (twice). He got another cup of coffee with the Giants last season.

Over six games in the majors last season he hit .143/.200/.429 (75 OPS+) over an extremely small sample size of 15 plate appearances. He was solid at the plate last season in the PCL hitting .254/.368/.432 over 235 PA’s, which is honestly fine.

Jakson’s best season in the minors was in 2022 where he hit 30 home runs while slashing .264/.359/.575 (.934 OPS), most of the damage happening with the Brewers Double A teams. Of course, David Stearns was the GM of the Brewers at that time. We’ve seen this multiple times over the last couple of years where Stearns has moved get a player he really likes back from Brewers organization (Tyrone Taylor being the best example of this).

You’ll notice something interesting if you look at Jakson’s fielding stats in the minors. He’s not just a catcher – he’s also an outfielder. He only played one game and one inning in the outfield in 2024, but in 2023 he played in the outfield about a third of the time.

Being the veteran option means that Jakson will see himself on the major league roster at some point this season (or at least brought up to Queens on days when the Mets aren’t sure about the availability of Alvarez or Torrens). He doesn’t project as a long time solution for catcher if something happens, but in some ways feels more appealing than rolling the dice with Parada or Senger if they end up struggling at the plate in the minors.

Here’s what we are looking for this spring when it comes to Jakson Reetz:

• Do the Mets play him in the outfield?
• Who does Reetz catch? How deep into March does Reetz start games? Can we make a judgment call about his depth chart position from this?
• Does he hit close to his .799 Triple A OPS this spring?