Burgeoning Mets prospect will represent Team USA in international tournament

A good number of New York Mets prospects had what can only be classified as disappointing seasons. Many of them suffered injuries that left them with far fewer games logged than we wanted to see. This wasn’t a year where Drew Gilbert fought his way to the majors. Jett Williams saw even less action.

Someone who did stay healthy and productive was Luke Ritter. After a successful breakout year in 2023 which had the righty hammering 27 home runs combined in Double-A and Triple-A, Ritter spent the full season with Syracuse proving the previous year was no fluke. He hit another 26 home runs and drove in 93.

Ritter’s game is not perfect. He struck out an alarming 174 times in 567 plate appearances. A problem throughout his tenure as a professional, it’s one of the reasons why the Mets didn’t feel the need to see what he could offer. A lack of a true position (he’s probably a first baseman) as well contributed to him being held back. It won’t stop him from representing Team USA next month.

Mets prospect Luke Ritter will continue playing baseball in 2024, this time for his country

International baseball competition isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. The World Baseball Classic continues to grow, but the wait does let the tournament lose some of its sizzle. This could be one of the reasons why the WBSC Premier12 hasn’t gained much attention at all. The last time it happened was in 2019. The 2024 installment will be its third. The timing doesn’t help much either. Although we’re all still hungry for more baseball, attention has split toward other major sports and whatever the heck is new on Netflix.

The 2019 tournament was won by Japan with Seiya Suzuki earning MVP honors. Team USA finished fourth. Taking place from November 2-17, we all probably would have paid a little closer attention if we knew what we had in store for us in 2020 when a pandemic shut down MLB for all but a delayed 60-game season.

This isn’t a tournament of only 27-year-old prospects. Team USA also includes some names you may recognize from other teams. Ex-Mets pitcher Rich Hill will be a participant. Dylan Covey, Anthony Gose, and Touki Toussaint are three of the other more recognizable names.

If you felt the Mets season ended too early, Ritter’s presence at least gives a little added incentive to follow along. He’s one of the more impossible Mets minor leaguers to predict because of his age, shortcomings, and availability in the Rule 5 Draft unless he is added to the 40-man roster. This tournament will be one more chance for him to showcase what he can do. Listed as an outfielder on the roster, we should expect him to move around the field as he has throughout his professional career.