Rising Apple
FanSided

Early NY Mets draft picks come with major injury risk but a whole lot of reward

The Mets were willing to gamble with two of their earlier picks in the 2025 draft.
ByTim Boyle|
New York Mets v Washington Nationals
New York Mets v Washington Nationals | Scott Taetsch/GettyImages

By the time rounds 5 and 6 come around, you’re not exactly looking for a player with the kind of potential to have his jersey retired in the future. It does happen. The New York Mets haven’t had much luck so far in round number five. In their history, Gerald Young (whom they traded as a prospect for Ray Knight) with a 6 WAR is the highest to sign after getting drafted. Burt Hooton, who went unsigned in 1968, obliterated it with a career 35.6 WAR. We do have promising young pitcher Christian Scott waiting to buck the trend.

Round 6 hasn’t gone much better. With a career 2.1 WAR, Mike Fitzgerald is the best Mets player ever drafted there.

The team didn’t necessarily have the history of the Mets in mind with this year’s draft selections. They could’ve taken anyone and the outcome would be the same. Rather than hope to develop a player into a major leaguer, the Mets appear eager to win these draft selections by keeping their players healthy.

The Mets took some early risks in the draft worth gambling on

If in all of these years the Mets have failed as much as they have to draft significant quality in rounds five or six, it’s appropriate to think outside of the box. A pair of hard-throwers isn’t such a bad strategy. What is there to lose?

Peyton Prescott will have a long road ahead of him with Tommy John surgery recovery as his next step before actually pitching in a game professionally. He appeared in 24 games at Florida State University, delivering a 5.15 ERA and striking out 46 in 36.2 innings. Nathan Hall out of the University of Central Missouri played even less. Logging 14.2 innings but posting a better 3.07 ERA, he averaged 11.7 K/9 in the small sample of what he can possibly offer the Mets.

Throwing hard is the new way of life for major league pitchers. Hitting 100 mph isn’t as special as it used to be, but it remains an effective weapon to have. Banking on both recovering well and maybe even advancements in sports science, each was a worthwhile gamble. Seeing how Jonah Tong has developed from a 7th round selection into one of the top pitching prospects in the game surely had some contribution.

Home/Mets Draft