The Mets had a number of impressive performances this season. T.J. Rivera, Phillip Evans, and Tomas Nido won their respective league’s batting titles. Brandon Nimmo had the highest OBP in all of AAA. Other prospects would have breakout seasons as well.

However, when you are discussing who the Mets best prospect and best minor leaguer currently is, the answer will invariably be Amed Rosario.

Since the very moment he was signed out of the Dominican Republic, everyone knew he was going to be an elite defender at the position.  In fact, the moment he signed with the Mets, he became the best shortstop in the entire organization.  That still holds true today.  What people didn’t know was whether Rosario was ever going to hit enough to become a major league player.  During his first three years in the Mets organization, there was still a real question about whether he was capable of hitting major league pitching consistently enough to become an everyday player.

Last season was an interesting year on that front.  If you were a glass half full person, you saw a player that could make contact and use his speed to get on base.  If you were a glass half empty person, you saw an impatient hitter who swung at everything near the plate, and as a result, he didn’t hit the ball with sufficient authority to maximize his speed around the bases.  Considering he hit .257/.307/.335 with 20 doubles, five triples, no homers, and 25 RBI in 103 games for Advanced A St. Lucie, the statistics would point to the glass being half empty.

However, the statistics don’t tell the full story with Rosario.  They don’t speak to his drive to become a better player.  It doesn’t address his receptiveness to coaching.  It doesn’t account for Rosario’s #DontBeSurprisedBeReady mentality.

Rosario didn’t just make strides this season, he became an offensive force.  He became a more selective player at the plate, and as a result, he was able to pick his pitch and drive it somewhere.  Furthermore, he began to learn how to take a walk.  In his 66 games in St. Lucie, Rosario hit .309/.359/.442 with 10 doubles, eight triples, three homers and 40 RBI.  It was the type of season that made everyone take notice.

Rosario was named to the 2016 Florida State League All-Star Game.  He was named to Team World for the Future’s Game.  He was named by Baseball America as the league’s best defender, best hitter, and it’s most exciting player.  Overall, Rosario dominated the Florida State League despite his being about three years younger than the average player at that level.

With Rosario mastering the Florida State League, it was time for him to go to AA Binghamton.  Upon his promotion, Rosario would become the youngest player in the Eastern League.  Once again, his relative youth wouldn’t matter.

In 54 games in the Eastern League, Rosario hit .341/.392/.481 with 14 doubles, five triples, two homers, and 31 RBI. Now, it is one thing to go up a level and succeed.  It is another thing all together to go up and level and actually play much better.  While Rosario was raking at the plate, he was still playing an elite defensive shortstop with Baseball America naming his the best defensive shortstop in the Eastern League.

Rosario’s final batting statistics would be .324/.374/.459 with 24 doubles, 13 triples, five homers, and 71 RBI.  Each and every one of those statistics was a career best for Rosario.  It was part of what has been a special year that has seen Rosario transform from an elite defender with questions about his hitting to becoming an untouchable Mets prospect that has ranked MMN’s Midseason Top Prospect.

He took baseball by storm by dominating two levels of the minor leagues, and everyone took notice.  Jose Reyes couldn’t help but talk poetically about him during their time together.  Rosario would also begin to be compared to Hall of Famers and soon to be Hall of Famers like Derek Jeter (even if it isn’t an apt comparison).  What all these comparisons miss is Rosario is a unique player with a unique skill set.  He showed that this year, and based upon what we saw this season, he is going to show us a lot more.

Overall, no one in the Mets organization showed more growth nor fulfilled more of their promise than Amed Rosario did over the course of the 2016 minor league season, and that is why he is MMN’s Position Player of the Year.

Please keep in mind, this decision was not made easily. As stated above, there were a number of position players across the Mets minor league system who had outstanding years. With that in mind, Dominic Smith deserves an honorable mention for the outstanding season he had.

Entering the 2016 season, the main question surround Smith was whether or not he’d ever hit for any power.  Starting in June, Smith answered those questions hitting .269/.340/.430 with five doubles, three homers, and 18 RBI.  From there, Smith only improved.  From July 1st until the end of the season, he hit .348/.429/.525 with 13 doubles, one triple, seven homers, and 40 RBI.  For the season, Smith hit .302/.367/.457 with 29 doubles, two triples, 14 homers, and 91 RBI. Far and away, this was his best offensive season as a professional.

When you combine those stats with Smith’s slick fielding, it was why he was named to Team USA in this year’s Future’s Game.  It also would be a reason why he could have been easily be named MMN’s Minor League Position Player of the Year.  It just so happened that Rosario took the same leap forward that Smith took this year, and Rosario’s leap was just a little further.

Overall, both Smith and Rosario had tremendous seasons, and all Mets fans should look forward to seeing them playing at Citi Field in the not too distant future.