How the Mets prospect traded for Huascar Brazoban has done with the Marlins

The New York Mets trade deadline deal for Huascar Brazoban hasn’t awarded them quite what they wanted. Already a demotion but quick promotion before probably even touching down in Syracuse, Brazoban was more than a one-year rental for the Mets.

A few years of control with minor league options as well, it was a wise pickup by the Mets to take Brazoban from the Miami Marlins on deadline day. He was pitching well and didn’t come at a high cost. Wilfredo Lara was the one prospect David Stearns had to subtract from the farm system to make the deal happen.

Lara, 20, is an infielder whose future with the Mets was uncertain. He didn’t show much as an offensive player until 2023 when he belted 14 home runs, stole 17 bases, and did so with a .264/.362/.45 slash line. Far too soon to know exactly what he’ll develop into, a hot month of August with the Beloit Sky Carp all the way in Wisconsin has given the Marlins some hope that they got something useful for their late-blooming reliever.

How former Mets prospect Wilfredo Lara has done since getting traded

Lara left the Mets batting .244/.349/.343 in 332 plate appearances for the Brooklyn Cyclones. He homered only 4 times in a tough ballpark to hit in. His 75 strikeouts were a bit high but made up for somewhat by the 40 walks.

With Beloit, Lara has slashed .278/.305/.456 with 3 home runs and 15 RBI. The small 95 plate appearance sample is small yet a major increase everywhere but the OBP. He appears to be swinging the bat more freely and getting results. He had only 29 RBI with Brooklyn.

All of his games with the Marlins organization came in the month of August, beginning with a 3 strikeout game on the first of the month. In his third game, Lara homered for the first time.

His season had already started to take a turn for the best in July when in 84 plate appearances he batted .306/.393/.403. All three of the slash line totals were season-highs. A poor April featuring only one RBI in 50 trips to the plate followed by a .565 OPS performance in May got him off to a rough start that his season totals were never able to recover from. Combined with both organizations, Lara has managed to put together a .252/.340/.370 batting line with 7 home runs and 44 RBI to go along with 15 stolen bases.

For sure a promising young players with some things to work on, we’ll have to keep a close eye on whether he explodes and becomes a big-time problem in the NL East for the Mets or an afterthought in a Marlins minor league system that can’t seem to develop much offense.