Mets Minor Leagues – 2022 Season Review

November 22, 2022 Philip Frank Eastern League, Florida State League, General, Mets, MiLB 0

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The 2022 MiLB seasons have to come to an end. This article highlights an outstanding season a player and pitcher had for each Mets minor league level. Also included under each minor league level are notable/underrated players that had great seasons. While some minor league levels saw more success than others, lots of these prospects outperformed expectations and will be showing their faces for the first time on my upcoming 2023 January Top 50 Mets Prospects list.

Triple-A: Syracuse Mets (64-85, 9th in International League East)

For the Syracuse Mets, 2022 was not great year, finishing second to last in the International East. They were 21 games under .500. Hitting wise they ranked dead last in average (.239) and in the bottom five in OPS (.720). For pitching, they had an alarming 5.16 ERA, which surprisingly is second to last. While they had multiple players come and go, they saw major league talent like Dominic Smith, Luis Guillorme, Brett Baty & even hosted Max Scherzer for a rehab start in September.

Player: Mark Vientos (.280 AVG / .877 OPS / 106 Hits / 41 XBH / .379 wOBA / 129 wRC+)

2022 was quite the year for Vientos, which resulted in his major league debut on September 11th. The 5th ranked third base prospect on our January list spent most of his year in Syracuse, sporting a .280 batting average with a 100+ hit season. Going forward, Vientos could be a great utility infielder for the big league club.

Pitcher: Jose Butto (36.2 IP / 2.45 ERA / 30 K’s / .198 AVG Against)

Butto only pitched in 8 games with Syracuse, starting 7 of them, coming up late from Double A Binghamton. Even though he only pitched 8 games, it was not a challenging pick due to the lack of pitching performances in Syracuse this year. In his short 36 innings pitched, he limited his opponents to a .198 average and struck out 30 while only walking 9.

Notable/Underrated: Travis Blankenhorn (.267 AVG / .807 OPS / 88 Hits / 35 XBH / .322 BABIP)

Double-A: Binghamton Rumble Ponies (53-83, 6th in Eastern League Northeast)

Another Mets minor league team that left a lot to be desired, finishing 30 games under .500. The team hit around .236 with a .707 OPS. The common theme of alarming pitching continues with a team ERA of 5.27 ranking them dead last in the Eastern League. The Rumble Ponies housed “The Big 3” (Alvarez, Baty & Mauricio) for most of the year before sending both Baty and Alvarez up to the majors.

Player: Ronny Mauricio (.259 AVG / .768 OPS / 132 Hits / 26 HR / 20 SB / .331 wOBA / 105 wRC+)

It was a growing year for one of the Mets top prospects Ronny Mauricio, who spent most of the season with Binghamton. I probably would’ve picked Alvarez or Baty here if they stayed longer considering both had OPS over .900. Mauricio was a part of the 20-20 club, smashing 26 homers and stealing 20 bases. Strikeouts remain an issue, striking out 125 times compared to just 24 walks. If he can work on putting the ball in play more often, his combination of speed and power could be elite at future minor league levels.

Pitcher: Michael Otanez (15 IP / 1.80 ERA / 20 K / .222 AVG Against / 6 SV)

It’s safe to say pitching was not a highlight at Binghamton this year, however in 14 games out of the bullpen, Otanez put together a nice line. He was 6/6 in save opportunities, striking out 20. Otanez has made appearances on our Top 50 list and will continue to move up if he puts up performances like this on a poor pitching Binghamton team.

Notable/Underrated: Brett Baty (.312 AVG / .960 OPS / 106 Hits / .390 BABIP)

Francisco Alvarez (.277 AVG / .921 OPS / 18 HR / .277 ISO)

High-A: Brooklyn Cyclones (70-62, 3rd in South Atlantic League North)

What a year it was for the Cyclones, where players had so many great seasons, including a trip to the SAL Championship Series that unfortunately ended against Aberdeen. The future is bright here for Brooklyn and the Mets, reversing the theme of bad pitching here. Tons of great seasons by pitchers, including having Dominic Hamel, who was named Mets Minor League Pitcher of the Year. Brooklyn also saw a rehab assignment by Eduardo Escobar.

Player: JT Schwartz (.273 AVG / .756 OPS / 109 Hits / 35 XBH / .348 wOBA)

A bounce back year for JT, who last year was hitting .195 in 100 plate appearances with Brooklyn. JT became one of Brooklyn’s better hitters average wise with the team leading 109 hits on the year. While only having 6 homer runs, he also had 25 doubles and 4 triples, showing his ability to hit for extra bases. Around 30% of his hits were for extra bases and was a big part to Brooklyn’s great lineup this year.

Pitcher: Dominic Hamel (55.2 IP / 2.59 ERA / 74 K / 1.08 WHIP / .180 AVG Against)

The Mets Minor League Pitcher of the Year had a great year both with St Lucie and Brooklyn, while spending majority at Brooklyn. One of my favorite prospects in the system who I interviewed this past winter, Hamel pairs his great control and elite spin rates to strike batters out. He had 74 strikeouts in 55.2 innings pitched and was a huge starter down the line for Brooklyn. Constantly putting up great starts, he limited opponents to just a .180 batting average against.

Notable/Underrated: Jose Peroza (.271 AVG / .755 OPS / 108 Hits)

Single-A: St Lucie Mets (73-56, 1st in Florida State League East)

THE CHAMPS! Another Mets minor league affiliate that saw success this year, finishing 1st in the Florida State League. They would go on to win the FSL Championship, with a massive Game 1 go ahead homer by Carlos Dominguez. An absolutely amazing year with some great future talent on this team. They even saw at bats and playing time down the stretch from 2022 1st round pick Kevin Parada, and a rehab assignment from the great Jacob DeGrom.

Player: Omar De Los Santos (.271 AVG / .798 OPS / 16 HR / 117 Hits / 70 STOLEN BASES)

Wow! An absolutely breakout year for Omar De Los Santos who stole 70 bases! The next highest in the league was 33. Omar was someone I personally wanted to go on the top 50 list last January after a great small sample on the FCL Mets. While striking out 151 times is certainly an issue, he still managed to draw 35 walks and 117 hits. He also had 16 homers to go along with the stolen bases. Could you imagine if the strikeouts were down a little and he reached base more? He probably could’ve stole 15-20 more bases, just absolutely insane and a big sleeper in the Mets organization who will certainly make my list this year.

Pitcher: Daniel Juarez (39 IP / 1.85 ERA / 56 K / 1.08 WHIP / .163 BA Against)

A great year for Juarez who in 26 games had a great 1.85 ERA, while striking out 56. He was great at limiting his opponents and only gave up 21 hits and 2 home runs. Juarez eventually got the call to Brooklyn but when he was here he was a great option out of the bullpen.

Notable/Underrated: Keyshawn Askew (46.2 IP / 1.93 ERA / 64 K / .176 BA Against)

Javier Atencio (39.2 IP / 2.27 ERA / 48 K)

Mike Vasil (37 IP / 2.19 ERA / 39 K)

Raul Beracierta (.300 AVG / .819 OPS / 95 Hits / 13 HR)

Carlos Domínguez (.233 AVG / .750 OPS/ 20 HR / 22 SB)

Alex Ramirez (.284 AVG / .802 OPS / 17 SB)

FCL Mets

Player: Hector Rodriguez (.349 AVG / .928 OPS / 37 Hits)

A great 18 year old young center fielder who had shown his hitting skills early. Unfortunately, now a member of the Cincinnati Reds system. No longer in the Mets system, but nonetheless a great year that should be highlighted.

Pitcher: Jawilme Ramirez (43 IP / 0.84 ERA / 40 K to 6 BB / 0.77 WHIP / .179 BA Against)

Got the call to St Lucie at the end, a great pitcher who has shown early his control and consistencies to find the strike zone. Limiting his walks and his opponents bats, definitely someone to watch.

Notable/Underrated: Luis Rodriguez (32 IP / 1.41 ERA / 37 K / .174 BA Against)

DSL Mets

Player: Yohairo Cuevas (.277 AVG / .772 OPS / 46 Hits)

Yohairo led the DSL Mets in hits this year. The tall first basemen born in New York has a lot to go in his career path, but notable start early.

Pitcher: Cristofer Gomez (22.2 IP / 0.40 ERA / 37 K / .110 BA Against)

Born in 2003, Cristofer has been great so far. Striking out opponents and just not letting them hit anything. It’s early in the career and not the best competition but still should be highlighted.

Notable/Underrated: Simon Juan (.219 AVG / .633 OPS / 44 Hits / 16 SB)

Philip Frank
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