3 former NY Mets prospects about to have a breakout season in the majors

Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings. Whenever a prospect is traded away, a fan goes numb. The New York Mets are no strangers to trading away young talent. In the last decade, they’ve only sold at the trade deadline in 2017, 2018, and 2023. Traditionally the time when most prospects are moved, they’ve also swapped some young players for veterans in the offseason in their attempt to build a big league contender.

None of those Mets prospects have gone on to haunt us nearly as much as letting Daniel Murphy, Zack Wheeler, and a few other MLB free agents go. In 2025, while we might not pull out any hair, these three former Mets prospects look on the verge of having a breakout year in the majors.

1) Pete Crow-Armstrong

If there’s one dearly-departed Mets prospect we’ve been waiting to tear out our hearts, it’s this guy. Drafted 19th overall by the Mets in 2020, Pete Crow-Armstrong was involved in one of the most controversial trades the franchise has made in recent years. It wasn’t on-par with sending Tom Seaver to the Cincinnati Reds nor does it feel like it’s anything close to Nolan Ryan to the California Angels for Jim Fregosi. The 2021 trade deadline deal involving PCA might just be a new generation’s version of Scott Kazmir to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

It was a simple deal of one prospect for two months of Javier Baez and a year and a half of Trevor Williams. Quality over quantity is what the Mets sacrificed for a half-hearted attempt at the postseason. They didn’t add nearly enough at the trade deadline that year to justify this trade. The team wouldn’t even finish above .500. Meanwhile, they tossed away yet another promising young outfielder much like Jarred Kelenic. For the record, everyone is still waiting for him to become a star.

Crow-Armstrong turns 23 days before spring training. A guy who amazingly played in only 6 games professionally with the Mets before he was traded (he was injured at the time), he quickly established himself as one of the game’s top prospects. He tore apart minor league pitching at every level in each chance he got. Hitless in 19 plate appearances during the 2023 season, he finally began to contribute for the Chicago Cubs in 2024.

Last year’s 410 plate appearances at the big league level resulted in a .237/.286/.384 slash line with 10 home runs. He stole 27 bases in 30 attempts. He received high marks for his defensive skills, leading the league with 8 outfield assists as a center fielder despite appearing in only 117 games at the position.