Mets Minors: Jeremy Rodriguez emerges as a Top 10 prospect

This season has not gone well for the Mets and while it wasn’t supposed to be a banner year the Mets look like they might once again find themselves as sellers at the trade deadline. Last year when the Mets were in a similar position, names like Drew Gilbert, Luisangel Acuna and Ryan Clifford stole the headlines but another player may wind up being the best of the lot. Jeremy Rodriguez, only 17 years old, was traded to the Mets for Tommy Pham and the early feedback on this player is remarkably good.

In 2023 he was still in the DSL where his great numbers had to be taken with a rather large grain of salt. In 2024 the Mets have him playing stateside and over a month before his 18th birthday he’s looking like quite the player.

Rodriguez is a left-hand hitting shortstop who can play every infield position. Given his size he is more likely to stick at short or second and the hope is he will develop into an defensive asset. His timeline to the majors is a number of years away so the roadblock of Francisco Lindor may not even be a factor but it will ultimately be up to him to hit his way into the majors.

Offensively, Rodriguez is a contact hitter with speed and a solid eye who hits for some middling to low power. He will get extra base hits and score a lot of runs thanks to his strong running skills. He already has 7 stolen bases in 2024 (13 games) and he’s hitting a robust .339 during that time. The stats that stand out from 2023 were his walks 33 compared to his strikeouts 31 (which he managed in 51 games). The ratio has fallen in 2024 but he’s still not nearly as strikeout happy as most prospects his age.

His is a star on the rise and one to watch!

The other youngster in Rookie Ball to watch has been Simon Juan. He hasn’t been as hot as Fanas but he looks to be on track in the early goings of Low A.

AAA: Syracuse Mets

Jose Butto deserves better – The Mets demoted Jose Butto to the minors because of money and contracts more than performance and Butto has continued to pitch well in AAA. My hope is that as the Mets continue towards the sale of the rental players we have been expecting, that Butto will find himself back in the major league rotation. The question is what he will need to do to lock himself into the team’s plans for 2025 and beyond.

David Peterson rehab continues smoothly – Peterson is set to debut this Wednesday against the Dodgers but all signs are optimistic on the former top pick of the organization.

Blade Tidwell still has a learning curve – Tidwell’s promotion to AAA was a good sign but his first start was a little wild. He has suffered control issues when introduced at each level and we need to watch how he progresses from a promising (if wild) first outing.

Luisangel Acuna’s numbers are improving… a little – He’s going to keep stumbling down the rankings but hopefully these small positive signs lead to larger breakout numbers.

AA: Binghamton Rumble Ponies

Brandon Sproat appears to have been worth the wait – The Mets drafted Brandon Sproat twice, so they really must have liked him to go back after he turned them down. Turns out, he looks like he was worth that devotion as he’s pitched just as well in Binghamton after earning his promotion. His big issue since promotion was the one strange game where the only 3 hits he gave up all went out of the park. He hasn’t shown that issue since and looks like he should be a major focus of the 2025 Spring Training prospects.

Tyler Stuart has steadied himself – I would love to tell you that Tyler Stuart was having another breakout year but I can’t, in good conscience, do that. He is having a solid year to build on the breakout of last year but expectations have been tempered.

Kevin Parada says there was no need for Mayday panic – His numbers on the year aren’t great and even after a stronger May we want to see more but Parada looks on the right track.

Welcome to AA Ryan Clifford – The Mets are certainly being more aggressive with promotions as Clifford is freed from the power doldrums for Brooklyn. He hasn’t seen an offensive surge just yet but fingers are crossed.

Welcome to AA Nolan McLean – The two way player hasn’t seen the sparkling numbers on either side of the game since his promotion but we’re hoping that a larger sample size will prove out in his favor.

Alex Ramirez has poured some ice water on his season – He still shows promise but his streaky hitting is troubling.

Advanced A: Brooklyn Cyclones

Nick Morabito looks good, for what he is – Don’t look for him to be Mike Trout or Aaron Judge. Morabito is a small outfielder and he’ll never be a power hitter but he’s hitting with loads of contact and using his time on base to make things happen with his speed. He is striking out a little more than I’d like after being promoted but if that improves a little bit he’s right on track to be a solid leadoff/back of the lineup hitter.

Jonah Tong finds some footing – There were some stumbles for Tong early on but he’s looked sharp in his last two outings (one in relief)

Kade Morris steady in Advanced A debut – It’s no small thing to pitch well in your first game after promotion but Morris did that. Hoping for more of this to follow.

Stanley Consuegra improves marginally – His May was better than his April but not good enough to have the Mets free him from Brooklyn.

Low A: Port St. Lucie Mets

Ronald Hernandez and Marco Vargas are a Dynamic Duo – Vargas was hurt in April and Hernandez’s numbers suffered but the surge in Hernandez’ performance has coincided with Vargas being back in the lineup. Vargas hasn’t been perfect since returning but I feel like these players who were acquired together somehow make up a tandem. True or not, it’s good to see both players in the lineup.

Joel Diaz is back on the mound – Good to see this promising prospect pitching again and pitching well. He’s being stretched out so he can start and it will take some time.

Jesus Baez showing more power – His OPS for May has crept higher and that is largely thanks to his 6 doubles and 4 home runs.

Boston Baro appears to be worth following – The Low-A infield is full of promising young players and Baro’s contact and discipline approach is a good compliment.

Colin Houck, three steps forward and two steps back – The last man in the infield is the one who was ranked highest before the season. Houck hasn’t shown consistency in anything but whiffs throughout the year. Each time he starts looking good he has a 3-4 strikeout game to dampen the excitement.

Is this the Willy Fanas we were promised – An international signee from a few years ago Fanas hasn’t managed to wow people. He’s certainly changing that narrative a little in 2024 which could shape up to be a mini breakout for him.