Why the NY Mets can still be satisfied with choosing A.J. Ewing over Drew Gilbert

There was a point in time when it looked like the New York Mets made the right call by shipping Drew Gilbert off. One of the gems of the Justin Verlander trade, Gilbert quickly seemed to deflate by slashing .215/.313/.393 in 2024 at Syracuse. In 2025, he was marginally better, but left the Mets' organization with a .243/.347/.430 line during his second go-around in Triple-A.

At the same time, A.J. Ewing was becoming a bright light. He rode a rocket ship, rising through the minor leagues and shooting up prospect rankings at the same time, before his aggressive call-up earlier this year. At first, Ewing hit the ground running in the bigs, and that seemed to run for a while, with him posting a .789 OPS over the first half, a time period that consisted of 222 plate appearances.

However, things turned, and Ewing has been mired in a horrendous slump. In the 166 plate appearances he's accumulated since the All-Star Break, he has posted a .489 OPS.

At the same time, Gilbert has gone in the other direction. He posted a .691 OPS in the first half, but that mark has risen to .769 so far in the second half. He finally seems to be comfortable in his role and is enjoying working as a table setter for the Giants.

All told, Gilbert has outproduced Ewing, slashing .242/.327/.391 on the season versus a .238/.309/.351 line for Ewing. Based on that, it seems like New York held on to the wrong young outfielder, but there are three distinct reasons why that isn't the case.

The Mets have three reasons to believe that A.J. Ewing will ultimately prove to be more valuable than Drew Gilbert

The first thing that's important to note is that Gilbert turns 26 at the end of September, played two years at the University of Tennessee, and spent 143 games toiling in Triple-A. On the other hand, Ewing turned 22 on August 10, was drafted three years ago out of high school, and played just 12 games at Triple-A (not to mention only 46 Double-A contests) before being called up.

Through that lens, Gilbert should be performing better. He's older and significantly more polished than Ewing. That makes the relatively narrow gap between their season lines seem nonexistent, and it certainly seems as if the Mets youngster has more room to grow than his Giants counterpart.

Then there's the speed aspect of things. That's a special part of Ewing's game, and something that Gilbert can't match. Ewing has 21 steals so far this season versus one for Gilbert. The biggest difference between the pair has been the 40-point difference in slugging, but if you factor in the extra bases that Ewing has gained with his legs, that gap basically evaporates.

Finally, there's the question of versatility. Both have played center field for the majority of the season, with 90 games for Gilbert and 75 contests for Ewing. They've both also made cameos in the outfield corners. The difference is that Ewing is also a legitimate second baseman, and though he has only played two big league games at the keystone thus far, he could ultimately find that position to be his permanent home.

The versatility Ewing provides gives the Mets options as they build their team. If they find a deal for a good center fielder, they could move him to second and be set. If they decide that he's their best option in center, they can simply leave him be. That's a level of flexibility that Gilbert simply can't match.

The urge to compare two former top Mets prospects is natural, but one has to look beyond the surface-level stats to truly understand why there really is no comparison between Gilbert and Ewing. The story is just beginning for both, but the potential Ewing provides is impossible for Gilbert to match.

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