It is almost September. And taking the 2010 Mets season into consideration? La-di-da. Either way, the September roster expansion is looming. Based on some of the more productive members of the Mets farm system, there are indeed some guys I’d like to see before seasons end. Here are five guys that will, or at least should get recalled for the last month of the season.
Nick Evans- Talk about falling off the face of the Earth, or the Mets at least. Evans was hanging out at AA Binghamton for most of the year and has played at AAA Buffalo for the past couple weeks. His numbers have been better than ever, and one could wonder why we have yet to see him in a Mets’ uni this season. In 115 games, between AAA and AA, Evans has hit .300 and popped 22 home runs. The Mets have been waiting for his power game to develop for years. Now is the time to see him get some more action after the rosters expand this week.
Jenrry Mejia- So now that the complete mismanagement of Mejia’s development is out of the way, time for him to head back up to the big league club. Hopefully, all we’ll see from him is a start or two, just to see if he pitches as well as he did out of the pen earlier this year. He’s been impeccable since being sent back down to the minors and recovering from injury concerns. He’s made six starts at Binghamton, four since returning from his injury. He’s 2-0 with a 1.32 ERA in those starts with 26 K’s and a complete game shutout. His control hasn’t been anything special, but he’s still really young, so it isn’t surprising. Interestingly enough, lefties have hit just .167 against him. We’ve seen him mopping up for the Mets, but now it’s time to see how he fares in five or six innings against a team like Philadelphia.
Dillon Gee- Mets’ fans have been aware of Dillon Gee for quite some time. The right-handed starting pitcher has been tossing some hard stuff for a while now. His 4.87 ERA at AAA Buffalo in 26 starts this season might not be impressive, but the guy is a control freak. He has posted a 13-7 record, and in 151.2 innings, he has walked just 36 while striking out 150. When he is on a roll in game, he cruises. This is enough for anyone to be excited to see if his command will carry over to the Major League roster.
Kirk Nieuwenhuis- Disregard his struggles at Buffalo for the past month. He should earn a spot on the Mets in September. At Binghamton this year, the left-handed hitting outfielder hit .289 with 16 homers, 61 RBI, and 13 stolen bases. His ability to integrate some good baserunning with his power is impressive. He just needs to work out the kinks with his plate discipline. Either way, I’m looking forward to what he has to offer in the future.
Lucas Duda- I’ve been pumped about the development of outfielder Lucas Duda all season. He is a hulking individual, standing in at 6’5’’ and 240 pounds, so we’ll see how mobile he can be in the outfield. But the left-handed swinging outfielder has put up the most dominant power numbers I’ve seen from a Mets’ prospect this year. The 24 year-old made a flawless transition from AA to AAA as well. Between 110 games in both stops, he has hit .303 with 23 home runs while driving in 87. He struck out 77 times while drawing 58 walks. He pulverized right-handed pitching at Buffalo this season, hitting .353 against them. There is a lot of unexpected upside here, so it will be interesting to see what he can do.
See this and more Mets’ minor league coverage from Matt in The Mets Gazette
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