Dominic Smith and the rest of the 2013 Mets draftees

With 40 Rounds and the Mets selecting players between 11^th overall and 1196^th overall, the draft can seem daunting.  This is a cheat sheet for Met fans who want to know about their draft picks without doing hours of research.

11^th: Dominic Smith

• Position – He’s a solid first baseman and could be the first baseman of the future for the Mets.  He has been a pitcher and an outfielder but his defense will only ever be good if he sticks at first.
• Profile – The bat is the story.  He’s a lefty and he can hit.  My concern isn’t that he won’t hit… he’ll hit, he makes great contact and hits the ball with authority.  My concern is that physically at 6’0” he’s not putting the typical amount of weight behind the baseball that your typical MLB first baseman does.  Assuming that he has power to match his raw hitting ability we could be looking at a STAR first baseman.
• ETA – 2017, For those that say that Smith is going to challenge Ike Davis for his role on the team are pretty misguided.  Smith COULD debut with the MLB club as soon as 2017 at which point Ike Davis would be 30 and any number of changes could have happened to the club.

48^th: Andrew Church

• Position – Church is a solid righty who projects to have the mix of pitches necessary to stick as a starting pitcher.
• Profile – Church’s fastball sits in the Low 90’s and might increase in MPH a tick or two as he matures.  Church’s major weapon is his curveball which has the potential to become a PLUS pitch as he develops.  Church will depend largely on development as a high school player he’s got a long road ahead of him.
• ETA – 2018, Church should start in the APP or GCL once he signs and if that goes well we could see him in 2014 playing in Brooklyn.  I want to be clear that I don’t think Church is a bad player.  I think the Mets would have been better served by drafting Austin Wilson with this pick.

76^th: Ivan Wilson

• Position – Wilson plays center field although his size is better suited for the corner outfield.  He’s supposed to have the speed/range to potentially stick in center and the power if he should have to shift to left or right.
• Profile – At 6’3” and 220 lbs. Wilson seems like he could be one of the largest center fielders in the game.  It’s more likely that Wilson moves to right where his plus arm and size are a better fit.  In terms of power, Wilson has power to all fields which typically leads to slightly higher batting averages than the typical “Pull Power” hitters.
• ETA – 2018, Wilson is a pick based largely on raw tools and as such he’s not likely to skip levels.  There is a shot that Wilson could move past a given level and get to the majors by 2017 but I wouldn’t bet on it before 2018.

84^th: Casey Meisner

• Position – Meisner is a big and “Projectable” righty and he should have enough offerings to stick as a starter in the majors.
• Profile – Meisner’s success will be based upon his fastball.  He’s already got his fastball around 94-95 and as he add’s some muscle he could move farther up the rankings charts.  With Meisner my  worry is that he will opt to pitch for Texas Tech and shoot for a better pick in 3 years.
• ETA – 2018, Like Church with perhaps more hurdles.  Meisner will need to develop better mechanics to survive.  He’s got the physical gifts.

116^th: L.J. Mazzilli

• Position – Lee Mazzilli’s son plays second base and while the Mets might have reached up a round or two to draft him they didn’t reach TOO far to get him.
• Profile – L.J. can hit for average if not power and has an outside chance to be a starting second baseman at the major league level some day.  As a senior he should sign quickly and get himself moving through the system.
• ETA – 2016, Mazzilli will probably start the year in Brooklyn where he will likely enjoy some fan friendliness thanks to his father.

146^th: Jared King

• Position – King can play center field but doesn’t look like a center fielder.  He’s got a sub-par arm so he’s not going to play right.
• Profile – King’s bat is a plus tool but most of that is tied into him hitting for high average.  He’s got a great swing but isn’t supposed to have tremendous power.  I’ve heard that he might be suited for leadoff but he isn’t a big base stealer.
• ETA – 2015, King should be promoted aggressively through the system and could see the majors by 2015.  I’ve no doubt the paper’s will dub him, “The King of Queens.”

176^th: Stuart Champ

• Position – Champ is 100% a center fielder.  I’ve got no doubt he’ll stick with the role but he’ll have some competition.
• Profile – Champ’s bat speed is good and leg speed is great but his instincts are poor.  He’s still learning the game and is probably best suited to starting in the GCL or APP instead of Brooklyn.
• ETA – 2016, Champ will be a year behind Biondi unless his fielding can catch up.  His pure speed may now be the best in the Met system.

236^th: Ricky Knapp

• Position – Knapp has four pitches he can throw for strikes but with a fastball that sits at around 90 MPH he might be a toolsy relief pitcher.
• Profile – Knapp has good control of his fastball, changeup, curveball and slider.  His changeup is his big pitch and he will need to have all four pitches available to make an impact with a generally below average fastball.
• ETA – 2015, I believe that the Knapp pick was based on a rapid projection as a reliever.  We’ll see where the Mets slot him in Brooklyn once he signs.

266^th: Patrick Biondi

• Position – Biondi was a great pick and is a genuine center fielder.
• Profile – Biondi is a tiny 5’9” outfielder who’s speed and defense will pave his way to the majors.  I would say that he’s most likely a 4^th outfielder type where his contact oriented swing, speed and defense will truly shine.
• ETA – 2015, Biondi should be Port St. Lucie to start the 2014 season.

296^th: Luis Guillorme

• Position – One of the best defensive short stops of this draft.
• Profile – There are those who see Omar Vizquel but I see another Ruben Tejada, Wilfredo Tovar type of organizational filler.
• ETA – 2019, He’ll make the majors at some point but probably as a backup infielder.

326^th: Tyler Bashlor

• Position – There is no doubt that Bashlor is a reliever but there is a chance that he has closer “Stuff”.
• Profile – Big time velocity that he has issues controlling.  If he can get the control down without sacrificing MPH he could be a steal at 326^th.
• ETA – 2016, We should know sooner than later if he’s a steal or a bust.

416^th: J.D. Leckenby

• Position – Leckenby is a sidearm pitcher who is intriguing.  I believe he’s going to be used in relief.
• Profile – If you watch him pitch you will not be blown away by the MPH.  He sits in the upper 80s.  What you might like more is the movement of his pitches.  I’ll be interested to see how he does for Brooklyn this season.
• ETA – 2016, Leckenby might move slower if the Mets wish to treat him as a starter.