Reviewing the 2023 Mets draft.
The Mets ended the 2022 season with a 101-61 record, making them eligible to make the 22nd overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. Because their 2022 payroll exceeded the competitive balance tax threshold by more than $40 million dollars, their first selection dropped by 10 picks, meaning that their first selection instead was the 32nd overall pick. With the 32nd overall pick, the Mets selected Colin Houck, a shortstop from Parkview High School in Georgia. He signed for $2,750,000, slightly above the $2,607,500 that Major League Baseball assigned to the 32nd overall pick. He was assigned to the FCL Mets for the remainder of the summer and was then assigned to the St. Lucie Mets to begin this season. Through the beginning of July, the 19-year-old is hitting .208/.306/.329 with 12 doubles, 4 triples, 3 home runs, 7 stolen bases in 11 attempts, and 29 walks to 97 strikeouts.
Rounds 2-10
With their second-round pick, the Mets selected Brandon Sproat, a right-handed pitcher from the University of Florida. He signed for $1,474,500, exactly the MLB-assigned slot value for the 56th overall selection. He did not pitch for the remainder of the summer and was then assigned to the Brooklyn Cyclones to begin the 2024 season. After posting a 1.07 ERA in 25.1 innings with 12 hits allowed, 12 walks, and 52 strikeouts, he was promoted to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies in mid-May. Through the beginning of July with them, he has a 1.94 ERA in 41.2 innings, allowing 27 hits, walking 10, and striking out 43. In total for the season, through the beginning of July, he has a cumulative 1.61 ERA in 67.0 innings with 39 hits allowed, 26 walks, and 76 strikeouts.
With their third-round pick, the Mets selected Nolan McLean, a two-way player from Oklahoma State University. He signed for $747,600, the exact value Major League Baseball assigned to the 91st overall selection. He played for the FCL Mets and St. Lucie Mets for the remainder of the 2023 season and was then promoted to the Brooklyn Cyclones to begin the 2024 season. Used as a true two-way player, he posted a 2.57 ERA in 28.0 innings on the mound and hit .224/.297/.552with 5 home runs before being promoted to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies at the end of May. Through the beginning of July for them, he has a 6.07 ERA in 29.2 innings and is hitting a cumulative .159/.232/.333 with 3 home runs. In total for the season, through the beginning of July, he has a cumulative 4.37 ERA in 57.2 innings with 53 hits allowed, 18 walks, and 70 strikeouts and is hitting a cumulative .192/.266/.446 with 9 doubles, 0 triples, 8 home runs, 1 stolen base in as many attempts, and 12 walks to 74 strikeouts.
With their second third-round pick, received as compensation for failing to sign Brandon Sproat in the 2022 MLB Draft, the Mets selected Kade Morris, a right-handed pitcher from the University of Nevada. He signed for $666,500, exactly the MLB-assigned slot value for the 101st overall selection. After pitching for the FCL Mets for the remainder of 2023, he was assigned to the St. Lucie Mets to begin the 2024 season. He posted a 3.63 ERA in 34.2 innings with them, allowing 34 hits, walking 11, and striking out 38 before being promoted to the Brooklyn Cyclones in mid-May. Through the beginning of July with them, he has a 4.58 ERA in 35.1 innings, allowing 31 hits, walking 13, and striking out 34. In total for the season, through the beginning of July, he has a cumulative 4.11 ERA in 70.0 innings with 65 hits allowed, 24 walks, and 72 strikeouts.
With their fourth-round pick, the Mets selected Wyatt Hudepohl, a right-handed pitcher from University of North Carolina at Charlotte. He signed for $500,000, a few thousand dollars below the $536,500 that Major League Baseball assigned as the slot value for the 123rd overall pick. He did not pitch at all in 2023 and was assigned to the St. Lucie Mets for the 2024 season. He began the year on the 7-Day Injured List due to undisclosed reasons but returned in early April. He made eight appearances with St. Lucie before returning to the 7-Day Injured List at the end of May, and was then transferred to the Full-Season Injured List in early June due to an undisclosed injury. All in all, he posted a 4.03 ERA in 29.0 innings, allowing 31 hits, walking 18, and striking out 31.
With their first pick in the qualifying free agent compensation pick round following the fourth round, the Mets selected A.J. Ewing, a shortstop from Springboro High School in Springboro, Ohio. He signed for $675,000, well-above the $483,000 that Major League Baseball assigned to the 134th overall pick. He played for the FCL Mets for the remainder of the season and returned to the team when their season began in 2024. He hit .254/.422/.571 in 19 games for them, slugging 5 home runs, stealing 5 bases, and drawing 19 walks to 22 strikeouts before being promoted to the St. Lucie Mets in the beginning of June. Through the beginning of July with them, he is hitting .234/.326/.377 with 2 home runs, 2 stolen bases, and 10 walks to 31 strikeouts. In total for the season, through the beginning of July, he is hitting a cumulative .243/.372/.464 with 8 doubles, 1 triple, 8 home runs, 7 stolen bases in 11 attempts, and 29 walks to 53 strikeouts.
With their second pick in the qualifying free agent compensation pick round following the fourth round, the Mets selected Austin Troesser, a right-handed pitcher from the University of Missouri. He signed for $350,000, below the $478,200 that Major League Baseball assigned to the 136th overall pick. He pitched with the FCL Mets for the remainder for the year and was assigned to the St. Lucie Mets for the 2024 season. He began the year on the 7-Day Injured List due to undisclosed reasons but returned in early April. He made nine appearances with St. Lucie before being diagnosed with an elbow injury at the end of May. All in all, he posted a 4.94 ERA in 31.0 innings, allowing 31 hits, walking 15, and striking out 45.
With their fifth-round pick, the Mets selected Zach Thornton, a left-handed pitcher from Grand Canyon University. He signed for $350,000, a few thousand dollars below the MLB-assigned slot value of $378,000 for the 159th overall selection. He did not pitch at all in 2023 and was assigned to the St. Lucie Mets for the 2024 season. He appeared in 10 games for St. Lucie before being transferred to the 7-Day Injured List in early June due to an undisclosed injury. All in all, he posted a 3.93 ERA in 36.2 innings, allowing 40 hits, walking 15, and striking out 26.
With their sixth-round pick, the Mets selected Jack Wenninger, a right-handed pitcher from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He signed for $225,000, a few thousand dollars below the MLB-assigned slot value of $299,000 for the 186th overall selection. He played for the FCL and St. Lucie Mets for the remainder of the season, and remained with St. Lucie when the 2024 season began. Though the beginning of July, he has a 5.43 ERA in 64.2 innings, allowing 60 hits, walking 21, and striking out 84.
With their seventh-round pick, the Mets selected Noah Hall, a right-handed pitcher from University of South Carolina. He signed for $176,250, well-below the $235,000 that Major League Baseball assigned as the slot value for the 216th overall pick. He did not pitch in 2023 due to injury and was assigned to the Brooklyn Cyclones to begin the 2024 season. He appeared in four games for them before being transferred to the 7-Day Injured List in late April and then the 60-Day Injured List in early May due to an undisclosed injury. All in all, he posted a 10.50 ERA in 12.0 innings with 20 hits allowed, 9 walks, and 12 strikeouts.
With their eighth-round pick, the Mets selected Boston Baro, a shortstop from Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo, California. He signed for $700,000, well-above the $192,900 that Major League Baseball assigned to the 246th overall pick. He played for the FCL Mets for the remainder of the 2023 season and was then promoted to the St. Lucie Mets for the 2024 season. Through the beginning of July, he is hitting .260/.345/.392 with 9 doubles, 3 triples, 3 home runs, 5 stolen bases in as many attempts, and 22 walks to 36 strikeouts.
With their ninth-round pick, the Mets selected Nick Lorusso, a third baseman from University of Maryland. He signed for $50,000, well-below the MLB-assigned slot value of $175,100 for the 276th player selected overall. He played for the St. Lucie Mets for the remainder of the 2023 season and was then promoted to the Brooklyn Cyclones for the 2024 season. Through the beginning of July, he is hitting .263/.367/.483 with 13 doubles, 3 triples, 11 home runs, 7 stolen bases in 8 attempts, and 38 walks to 57 strikeouts.
With their tenth-round pick, the Mets selected Christian Pregent, a catcher from Stetson University. He signed for $50,000, well-below the $165,800 Major League Baseball assigned to the 306th overall selection. He split the rest of the 2023 season with the St. Lucie Mets and the Brooklyn Cyclones and remained in Brooklyn for the 2024 season. Through the beginning of July, he is hitting .169/.279/.191 with 2 doubles, 0 triples, 0 home runs, 0 stolen bases, and 12 walks to 37 strikeouts.
Rounds 11-20
With their eleventh-round pick, the Mets selected Brett Banks, a right-handed pitcher from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. He signed for $200,000, $50,000 of which counted against the Mets’ 2024 MLB Draft bonus pool. He pitched for the FCL Mets for the remainder of 2023 and was assigned to the St. Lucie Mets to begin the 2024 season. He appeared in three games for them before being promoted to the Brooklyn Cyclones in mid-April, allowing one earned run in three innings with 3 hits allowed, 1 walk, and 4 strikeouts. He appeared in 11 games with the Cyclones, posting a 3.18 ERA in 11.1 innings with 6 hits allowed, 6 walks, and 10 strikeouts before being placed on the 7-Day Injured List in early June due to an undisclosed injury. All in all, he posted a cumulative 3.14 ERA in 14.1 innings, allowing 9 hits, walking 7, and striking out 14.
With their twelfth-round pick, the Mets selected Brady Kirtner, a right-handed pitcher from Virginia Tech. He did not sign with the club and returned to Virginia Tech for the 2024 season.
With their thirteenth-round pick, the Mets selected Ben Simon, a right-handed pitcher from Elon University. He signed for $150,000 and played with the FCL Mets and St. Lucie Mets for the remainder of the 2023 season. In 2024, he was assigned to the Brooklyn Cyclones, missing roughly a month between mid-May to mid-June due to an injury. Through the beginning of July, he has a 5.23 ERA in 20.2 innings, with 23 hits allowed, 9 walks, and 23 strikeouts.
With their fourteenth-round pick, the Mets selected John Valle, a right-handed pitcher from Thomas Jefferson High School in Tampa, Florida. He did not pitch in 2023, and in 2024, it was reported that he had undergone Tommy John surgery.
With their fifteenth-round pick, the Mets selected Justin Lawson, a right-handed pitcher from North Carolina State University. He signed for $150,000 and did not play for the remainder of the 2023 season. In 2024, he was assigned to the Brooklyn Cyclones, and through the beginning of July, he has a 3.75 ERA in 36.0 innings, allowing 22 hits, walking 17, and striking out 33.
With their sixteenth-round pick, the Mets selected Jake Zitella, a third baseman from St. Charles East High School in St. Charles, Illinois. He signed for $200,000, $50,000 of which counted against the Mets’ 2024 MLB Draft bonus pool. He played for the FCL Mets for the remainder of the summer and remained there when their season began in 2024. Through the beginning of July, the 19-year-old is hitting .246/.357/.354 with 9 doubles, 1 triple, 1 home run, 1 stolen base in 2 attempts, and 16 walks to 36 strikeouts.
With their seventeenth-round pick, the Mets selected Bryce Jenkins, a right-handed pitcher from the University of Tennessee. He signed for $180,000, $30,000 of which counted against the Mets’ 2024 MLB Draft bonus pool. He appeared in games for the FCL Mets and St. Lucie Mets for the remainder of the season and was then promoted to the Brooklyn Cyclones for the 2024 season. After not appearing in a single game, the Cyclones placed him on the Full-Season Injured List in mid-May.
With their eighteenth-round pick, the Mets selected Gavyn Jones, a left-handed pitcher from White Oak High School in White Oak, Texas. He did not sign with the club and honored his college commitment to McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas.
With their nineteenth-round pick, the Mets selected Christian Little, a right-handed pitcher from Louisiana State University. He did not sign with the club and returned to LSU for his senior season.
With their twentieth-round pick, the Mets selected Kellum Clark, an outfielder from Mississippi State University. He signed for $150,000 and played for the FCL Mets and St. Lucie Mets for the remainder of the season. In 2024, he began the year on St. Lucie’s 7-Day Injured List, eventually getting activated in mid-May. After appearing in 8 games for them and going 3-20 with them, he was promoted to the Brooklyn Cyclones in early June. Through the beginning of July, he is hitting .079/.352/.079 with 0 extra base hits, 0 stolen bases, and 14 walks to 17 strikeouts. In total on the season, through the beginning of July, he is hitting .103/.350/.138 with 0 doubles, 1 triple, 0 home runs, 0 stolen bases, and 20 walks to 25 strikeouts.