Odds are, Marcus Semien will be back with the Mets to begin next season because of the $46 million he is still owed.
Odds are, Sean Manaea will be back with the Mets to begin next season because of the $25 million he is still owed.
In each case, the Mets will want to see what the veteran has left to offer before viewing an established, expensive player as a sunk cost.
But if and when the Mets move on from the second baseman and back-end starter, respectively, a couple top prospects who could further emerge as next in line for those jobs visited Citi Field on Monday.
Infielder Mitch Voit and lefty starter Jonathan Santucci earned a step into the spotlight this season as the organization’s player and pitcher of the year.
Voit was a first-round pick just last season who already has hit his way to — and nearly through — Double-A Binghamton. The infielder, who still sees some time at his more natural second base but has slid over and impressed Mets officials at shortstop, started his first full professional season without much promise. On May 23, he was hitting .210 with a .651 OPS with High-A Brooklyn.
And then he went on a run that rivaled any minor leaguer, getting hot in Brooklyn and bringing that heat to Binghamton. From May 24 through the end of the season, he hit .300 with an .866 OPS, 32 of his 45 steals and just 58 strikeouts with 40 walks.
The switch that flipped was more mental than mechanical, Voit reiterated while being honored before the Mets opened a series with the Orioles. The 21-year-old from the University of Michigan began learning where he liked the ball and which pitches to swing at.
“I’m trying to figure out my strengths in the box and how do my strengths match up against this pitcher? And how can I maximize this at-bat to bring the most value in that moment?” said Voit, who is the club’s No. 4 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, and would have competition if the Mets decide they want to try out an internal upgrade for Semien (or someone else, given that Voit is a flexible infielder) next season.
The Mets’ No. 1 prospect (Jefferson Rojas, acquired in the Clay Holmes-Tyrone Taylor trade) is a middle infielder. So is their No. 7 prospect (Sammy Stafura, swapped for Luke Weaver). Also No. 10 (Émilien Pitre, who came over in the Freddy Peralta package). Further down the system are top young shortstop prospects in Elian Peña and Wandy Asigen.
But a torrid final four months of his season gave Voit an early potential avenue toward where he wants to be.
“He’s somebody who can do a lot of impressive things on the baseball field,” said interim manager and former (and likely future) player development executive Andy Green, who highlighted Voit’s resilience. “He really can defend the field, run the bases.”
In a minor league season in which the Mets have not seen enough breakthroughs, Voit stands out. As does Santucci, who has separated himself among a pitching prospect collection in which too many took steps back.
In a season that has featured early struggles, periods of overwhelming excellence and a promotion to Triple-A Syracuse, Santucci has flashed some of the best stuff in the Mets system while pitching to a combined 3.99 ERA with 157 strikeouts in 119 ²/₃ innings.
In velocity and movement, the power of the arsenal is better than that of fellow lefty Zac Thornton, who has forced his way to the majors and is thriving. At least according to Thornton himself.
“His stuff is better than my stuff,” Thornton said of Santucci, whom he played with in Brooklyn and Binghamton. “Obviously he just throws harder and then his slider is a little bit tighter I’d say. I think he’s got way more swing-and-miss stuff than I do.
“He can definitely compete here at the major league level.”
Before this season, what largely held back Santucci — who dominated at Duke with a mid-90s fastball with good ride and biting slider — was the lack of a reliable third pitch. He has had a couple projects to work on in a curveball and changeup (especially helpful against righty batters), both of which have taken steps this season.
Since his late July promotion to the highest minor league level, his curveball has been easily his best pitch, holding opponents to a .105 average with a 53.3 percent whiff rate. Further refining both those secondaries could be the difference between a promising major league reliever and a bona fide major league starter.
“Knowing that my fastball and slider are good enough to get hitters out, but having multiple other options is going to be really good to be able to get through a big league lineup three times,” said Santucci, who this season is being held back by inconsistency — there are moments of brilliance and duds — and walks (4.74 per nine innings).
With fellow top prospects such as Jonah Tong and Jack Wenninger not yet establishing themselves, there is a major league lane available for Santucci with a bit more growth.
“His stuff is real,” Green said. “And for both [Santucci and Voit], there’s more of a mountain to climb out in front of them before this opportunity belongs to them.
“But they’ve taken some amazing steps this year.”
