Mets have selected 2B Carlos Cortes in the third round:

Baseball America

#177

School: South Carolina
Ht: 5-8 | Wt: 185 | B-T: L-B | Commit/Drafted: Mets ’16 (20)
Scouting Report: An undersized, 5-foot-8, 185-pound draft-eligible sophomore without a true defensive home, Cortes has befuddled scouts dating back to his high school days when he was taken in the 20th round by the Mets. He hasn’t been any easier to evaluate at South Carolina, where he’s spent the first two seasons of his college career languishing through early season slumps at the plate before breaking out in the second half. After straddling the Mendoza line for the early part of this spring, Cortes has raised his slash line to .253/.380/.526 through 194 at-bats. Known for a short, compact, line drive-producing lefthanded swing, Cortes has swung with a more uphill bat path this season, reducing his contact but resulting in 15 home runs. When he’s at his best, Cortes controls the strike zone and shows a knack for finding the barrel, but his strong prep hitting track record has been shakier at the college level. How high Cortes goes in the 2018 draft will largely depend on how much belief teams have in his bat, as Cortes has an unusual defensive profile. Fully ambidextrous, Cortes throws lefthanded when he plays in the outfield, but his arm strength from both arms is fringy and he’s a below-average runner. He’ll always need to hit to move up the ranks in pro ball.

Via Baseball America.

2080Baseball

Carlos Cortes, OF, Univ. of South Carolina
Ht/Wt: 5’7”/197            B/T: L/R           Age (as of 2018 MLB Draft): 20y, 11m
Video

Cortes utilizes excellent trunk and core strength to produce plus impressive power to the pull side given his size and demonstrates an ability to work for pitches he can drive. There are some plate coverage concerns, which were evident on the Cape last summer, but the raw materials are here for a big league contributor with the stick. Though his .244 batting average would indicate a down year, Cortes demonstrated on base skills by drawing more walks (39) than strikeouts (29) and hit 15 homeruns.

The Mets just took Carlos Cortes, 5-foot-7 LF/2B from South Carolina, with their 3rd round pick. There's potentially above-average raw power here, but he underwhelmed this season and scouts are skeptical he has enough bat-to-ball skills to stick

— Alex Rosen (@asros213) June 5, 2018

#Mets re-draft RS Soph Carlos Cortes – 2B/LF type, has power, gets on base. Only hit .260 with aluminum this yr. Took him in 20th out of HS

— Jon Lewis (@j32lewis) June 5, 2018

Mets go with Carlos Cortes, South Carolina 2B. Can really hit, has developed more power, somewhat versatile defender. Hit tool is the draw here.

— Brian Sakowski (@B_Sakowski_PG) June 5, 2018

MMN Analysis

The Mets drafted Cortes in the 20th round of the 2016 draft.  He went unsigned by the Mets as Cortes was looking for a big bonus to pursuade him not to attend schoool at the University of South Carolina.

While small at 5’8”, he has nice swing from the left side.  He’s got a bit of pop, and can really hit, but is a below-average runner with some big to him.

Remarkably, he’s ambidextrous with him throwingright-handed as an infielder and left-handed as an outfielder.  Notably, when he was drafted he was announced as a second baseman.

Cortes turns 21 years old on June 30th. With him coming off a somewhat disappointing season, it’s possible Cortes was an underslot pick, which would free up some money for later overslot draft picks.