Max Wotell was our #20 prospect and he was traded, so we’re moving Phillip Evans into our list at #50, and the rest move up. Technically, Gregory Guerrero becomes our #20 prospect.

#50 Phillip Evans UTI

Ht: 5’9″  Wt: 220 Level: Double-A Binghamton

B/T: R/R  Age: 9/10/1992 (23)  Age Dif: -1.3

Acquired: Drafted in the 15th round in 2011 by the Mets out of La Costa Canyon HS

Preseason Rank: Unranked

2016 Statistics:  87 G, 312 AB, 95 H, 25 2B, 7 HR, 19 BB, 54 K, SB .304/.349/.452

Mets made a shocking move in 2011 in the later rounds, signing Evans for 650K, and making an effort to grab some highly touted talent. A more average-tool guy, who plays more hard-nosed more than anything. He underwhelmed for his first four seasons with the Mets as he slowly climbed the ladder, but grew into his own this season in Binghamton showing off his ability to put the bat to the ball.

Evans stings the ball, mostly to left field, with all but one if his home runs going to left, and 19 out of 25 doubles going that way as well. His swing is geared towards line drives that he clubs especially hard. He will not hit for more than gap power during his career, but that’s fine for his gameplay.

Evans can play any of the infield positions, with good hands, and a strong arm. As a stocky guy with average speed, he may be stretched at short, but at third base and second base, he can be more than solid. Evans projects as a utility type going forward, but a versatile guy is someone the Mets usually need.

#19 David Thompson 3B

Ht: 6’0″  Wt: 208  Level:  High-A St. Lucie

B/T: R/R  Age: 8/22/1993 (22) Age Dif: -.7

Acquired: Drafted by the Mets in Round 4 of the 2015 Draft out of The University Of Miami

Preseason Rank: #23

2016 Statistics:  101 G, 375 AB, 107 H, 30 2B, 2 3B, 7 HR, 27 BB, 79 K, .285/.343/.432

A Mets draftee in the fourth round last year, and the second 3rd baseman in a row taken in the fourth round by the team, Thompson underwhelmed offensively for the Cyclones. He’s bounced back this year hitting .294/.344/.474 in A-Level Columbia, and was moved up to St. Lucie in July.

In terms of describing Thompson, there’s really one word: Power. He’s got a lot of it, raw, especially. It hasn’t showed up in games in the way that we’ve expected of it yet, but it’s there, nonetheless. Thompson is a decent contact hitter, with some ability to get on base, and has struck out at a 18% clip. But, I wouldn’t expect too high of an average from him, or on base percentage.

As for defense, he is an athlete, and can man third base really well in terms of lateral movement and ability to field. However, his arm is merely average, which is adequate for third, but not preferable for the position. He’s worked hard to improve his play and it’s shown lately. Overall the package, should he tap into his power more, he could be a viable piece either at first or third in the future.

#18 Marcos Molina RHP

Ht: 6’3″  Wt: 188  Level: None

B/T: R/R  Age: 3/8/1995 (21)  Age Dif: –

Acquired: Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2012

Preseason Rank: #9

2016 Statistics:  Has not played.

Went down with Tommy John Surgery in September of last year, Molina is still a very interesting pitcher with some frontline rotation upside. In Brooklyn in 2014, he dominated the league, despite being much younger than the competition. However, in 2015, he was injury riddled, and then went down with surgery.

When healthy, Molina has plus control, and can sling a 90-96 mile per hour fastball in with movement and precision. In addition, he is very polished, and boasts an at least above-average slider and changeup. Unfortunately, his delivery is worrisome with little movement on his lower half, and very reliant on his elite arm-speed to garner his velocity. Next season will be a good test to see how he bounces back from Tommy John Surgery, but if all goes well, we could see another upside arm skyrocketing back up our prospect lists.

#17 Gabriel Ynoa RHP

Ht: 6’2″  Wt: 160   Level:  MLB

B/T: R/R  Age: 5/26/1993 (22) Age Dif:

Acquired:  International Free Agent, 2009 out of the Dominican Republic

Preseason Rank: #14

2016 Statistics:

MILB: 23 GS, 10-5 W/L, 4.42 ERA, 23 GS, 138.1 IP, 159 H, 77 R, 68 ER, 36 BB, 72 K .293 BAA

MLB: 3 G, 1-0, 12.00 ERA, 3 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, BB, 2 K .364 BAA

Ynoa is a curious case in general because there is such a strange profile for a pitcher at the higher levels. He was just called up to the MLB, and in his first outing, showed exactly what he was. His scouting report has been very consistent over the years: A 90-96 fastball that he commands very well from a three-quarters slot, but has very little movement on the fastball. His slider and curve are below average, and don’t really grade out much for out-pitches, which explains his lack of strikeouts, as well as his high rate of hits allowed. His changeup is nice, an above-average to plus offering.

He’s usually a guy holds velocity into the later innings, but starts to get tagged around the third time through the order. He may be better off being a reliever if he can’t develop that third pitch he desperately needs to strike out batters. The Mets currently have him in the bullpen, and he may stay that way for the rest of his career, barring the third pitch.

#16 Anthony Kay LHP

Ht: 5’11”  Wt: 186   Level:  None

B/T: L/L  Age: 3/21/1995 (21) Age Dif: None

Acquired:  Drafted in 2016 at 31st Overall By the Mets out of UCONN.

Preseason Rank: Unranked

2016 Statistics:  None

Mets apparently couldn’t let this Ward Melville lefty go, even after drafting him in 2013 in the 29th round. Signed for a way under slot 1,100,000 dollars as the 31st overall pick in the most recent draft, Kay is an upside arm who may not pitch for a while. When the Mets and Kay converged for the physical, the team found that his arm was very troubling, with some “fraying” in his UCL, and reworked their deal for 896,000 below slot value.

When healthy, Kay can throw low to mid-90’s from the left side, and has an above-average change. His slider, however, is below average and needs work. His command is above-average and he’s very crafty in how to set up his pitches for hitters to get over. We could see him next year, or the year after, depending on the extent of the injury for Kay. However, he projects as a mid-rotation starter that could move fast if healthy.

Previous Top 50 posts:

Numbers 50-41, Numbers 40-31, Numbers 30-26, Numbers 25-21