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Mets Prospect Jhoan Urena Leads Hit Parade in St. Lucie Win

By Ernest Dove

August 26, 2016 3 Comments

Photo By Ernest Dove

Photo By Ernest Dove

If you’re a person who likes offense, you would have enjoyed watching the St. Lucie Mets clobber the Charlotte Stone Crabs by a score of 13-0 on Thursday night at Tradition Field. I was lucky enough to have been at the game and I would like to share some of my thoughts, opinions and analysis from the win.

The game was out of reach pretty much from the time it started on this night. Starting right at the top with Mets leadoff hitter Jonathan don’t call me Tanner Boyle Johnson, who collected thee hits including a double and three RBIs. The small, yet hustling Johnson helped spark the offense all night by getting on base.

The best way to single out the hitting stars on a 13 run night would be to shine a light on the top organizational prospects on the team, Jhoan Urena, Kevin Kaczmarski and David Thompson.

Photo By Ernest Dove

Photo By Ernest Dove

David Thompson went 1 for 4 on the night with a double and 2 RBIs.  To go along with the stats I wanted to point out the ability of David to make solid contact all night, showing power on his drive to left field on the double and also going to all fields. Thompson showed an ability to go with the pitch, including an RBI groundout to 2B side with a runner at third base and less than two outs.

Defensively, David made all the routine plays and even made a really good scoop on a liner to him for a put out. All in all, David Thompson looks to continue to be a legit prospect within the organization. The sound of the ball off his bat continues to impress me, and his ability to drive in runs is a welcome sight.

On the night, I was also pleased to have seen the true talent and ability of outfield prospect Kevin Kaczmarski, who went hitless but looked good at the plate the last time I saw him in person. On Thursday night Kevin went 2 for 5 with an RBI and also showed an ability to make strong and solid contact on the ball. I continue to see the lift he puts on the ball with his swing and I would not be surprised to he his home run totals climb as he progresses through the system and out of the large ballpark at Tradition Field and the Florida State League.  He’s another lefty swinging outfielder down on the farm but you can simply never have enough talented hitters and the talent is definitely here with Kevin.

The main star of the evening was third base and now perhaps first base prospect Jhoan Urena. This was the best I have seen Urena all season watching St. Lucie Mets games, both offensively and defensively at the 1B position. What I most excited about was the way he squared up on the ball all night with solid contact to center and opposite field all night from both sides of the plate.

The switch hitter drilled two shots as a lefty over the heads of the outfielders in the big ballpark. Later hit a bomb as a righty between and over the heads of the center and right fielders on his way to going 3 for 5 with two doubles and three RBIs.

Defensively, I was extremely impressed with his ability and approach in attacking the ball on hot shots his way. He showed an ability that he’s always had to scoop up hot shots on the corner same as his history watching him at 3B. However, this time around Urena, of whom I’ve had some quite and minor concerns about arm strength from 3B, would have no such worries at first. He made all the plays and the right tosses to the pitcher on numerous put outs on the evening.  He remains a ‘stocky’ guy physically, and so this transition to 1B is not a stretch for him, and at least on this night looked very comfortable there.

Photo by Ernest Dove

Photo by Ernest Dove

Pitching wise, this was my second time seeing Chris Flexen on the mound. As was the case last time I watched Chris, he continued to show an impressive curveball all night, baffling hitters with it, but continued to have some control issues. I kept checking the scoreboard all night and couldn’t help by notice the strike to ball ratio looking pretty even, especially through the first three innings.

From my angle sitting first row behind dugout on 3B side it appeared that he continued to leave his fastball up in the zone, and also wasn’t getting strike calls often on his fastball. There was a mix of solid and then weak contact off Chris all evening, leading to only three hits allowed, but limited Ks and a high pitch count leading to his removal from game after five innings.

I am interested in seeing his projection going forward up the organization and whether his future can be as a starter going forward. My good friend, fellow life long fan and solid judge of talent, Scot, has thoughts about a future more as a reliever for Flexen.  However, the talent is definitely there, so is the young age of Chris, and command of his above average looking curveball is undeniable.

The other pitcher to mention is my new fascination and intrigue over reliever Tyler Bashlor. Tyler pitched two scoreless and hitless innings, throwing out nothing but strike after strike.  He appeared to throw almost exclusively fastballs, and the opposing hitters just couldn’t catch up to it all. Every hitter to face Bashler either struck out or made weak contact, and I honestly don’t remember if any ball left he infield in his two innings of work.  I can’t wait to see what Tyler can do at the AA level and beyond going forward. You just can’t help but love a guy who comes out literally firing on all cylinders and living in the strike zone.

All in all it was obviously a great night for baseball and for the top prospects at this level. Again ,I’m personally singling out Kacz, Thompson, Urena and Bashlor as guys to look out for and keep a strong eye on next year.

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