Kyle Schnitzer highlights the Mets draft picks from round 11 and beyond. – Joe
Instead of talking about every draft pick, lets focus on some of the more interesting ones.
Mets Minors
Mets Minor League Update: Buffalo Bisons Starting Pitcher Chris Schwinden
NOTE: this is a post by another new contributor to MetsToday, Josh Burton. You may remember Josh filled in for me a few weeks back while I was traveling. — Joe
If the Mets and their new administration want to succeed in the the future, they will have to build the team through the draft and consequently, the minor leagues. In each post, I will highlight one up-and-coming player in the Mets farm system at each level that might have a part in the rebuilding of our beloved Amazin’s.
Chris Schwinden
Chris Schwinden, starting pitcher for the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate Buffalo Bisons, has definitely not reached AAA the conventional way. Schwinden was
Quote of the Day: Mets Didn’t Have the Prospects For Lee
With sources confirming to the Daily News’ Mark Feinsand that Lee is about to become a Yankee in a package that includes top catching prospect Jesus Montero, what had long been clear became nearly official: The Mets–because Ike Davis and Jon Niese are no longer prospects but important contributors to the major league team–could not … Read more
Minor League Look: Sand Gnats Pitching
NOTE: This is another installment by MetsToday minor league correspondent Matt Himelfarb.
Taking stock of the Mets pitch corps throughout the system, the picture is not exactly awe-inspiring.
Jenrry Mejia is struggling in the big league pen at the expense of further development. Twenty-three year old Brad Holt, whom the Mets selected with the 33rd overall pick in the 2008 draft, looks more like Bobby Parnell than a top-flight starter in the making.
In the lower minors, “the big four” who dominated the Sally League in 2009- Jeurys Familia, Kyle Allen, Robert Carson, and Eric Beaulac- are all struggling to one degree or another in the Florida State League.
Which leaves guys in Savannah such as Brandon Moore, Darin Gorski, and James Fuller as a semblance of promise.
Minor League Look: Kai Gronauer
Kai Gronauer has a lot more riding on him than your average Single-A catcher.
Signed by the Mets in April 2008, the 23 year-old Gronauer
Minor League Look: Wilmer Flores
NOTE: This is a report from MetsToday’s official sabermetrician and minor league correspondent Matt Himelfarb. Enjoy.
Wilmer Flores has come a long way since Summer 2008 in Kingsport.
Two years ago, Flores, just 16 years old, was assigned to the Kingsport Mets of the Rookie level Appalachian League. At that age, any semblance of production- any semblance of playing time, for that matter- warrants some attention. Yet, Flores took the league by storm, hitting .310/.351/.490 in 265 plate-appearances before a late-season promotion to Brooklyn.
Of course, there were some growing pains along the way.
A little over a month into the season, the Princeton Rays came into town for a three-game set. Tim Beckham, the number one overall pick that June, was there as well, setting the stage for quite a spectacle. For three nights, Hunter Wright Stadium, capacity 2,500, would boast the two best prospects in the league.
“All of a sudden you got probably the best two players in the league”, than Kingsport manager and current Sand Gnats skipper Pedro Lopez says, “and everybody wants to know who’s the best? Who’s the better shortstop in the league? And I saw this kid is really nice, really polite. Its unbelievable.”
Than came his first interview with a reporter from New York, with Lopez acting as translator. Most of it went something like this: