Mark Vientos/Photo by Allen Greene Photography
Position: 3B B/T: R/R Age: 12/11/99 (19)
Acquired: 2017 Second Round Draft Pick (59th overall) from American Heritage High School (Plantation, FL)
Previous Rank: 4
2018 Stats (Kingsport): 60 G, 262 PA, 223 AB, 32 R, 12 2B, 11 HR, 52 RBI, 1 SB/0 CS, .287 AVG/.389 OBP/.489 SLG/.878 OPS, .312 BABIP
Vientos had himself about as perfect of a season as you could have expected out of an eighteen year old high school draftee. Playing against competition that was on average two years older than he was, Vientos finished within the Top Ten of the Appalachian League for Hits, Extra Base Hits, Total Bases, Home Runs, RBI, Walks, Slugging%, ISOlated Power, and OPS. You could pretty much find him near the top of the leader-board in every statistical category next to some of the most highly rated talent in baseball including super prospect Wander Franco (#13 overall MLB Pipeline)
Not many guys in the Mets system have a better “bat-to-ball” skills than Vientos does. He has quick hands and a quick, compact swing than generates excellent bat speed resulting in a TON of hard contact. He combines this with a strong knowledge of the strike zone and a willingness to “hunt his pitch” to generate high contact rates that should produce a solid average both in the present and in the future as he moves up the organizational ladder. There is plenty of raw power in the profile too. Despite being listed at 6’4″ 185 pounds, according to a local scout he “looks pretty well put together [and is] particularly strong in the lower half. There’s some projection remaining too, I could see him carrying another 10-15 lbs of muscle, particularly up top.” Vientos generates some of the best exit velocities in the entire Mets minor league system and some scouts have indicated that at times he displays 60 grade raw power.
On the defensive front, while Vientos was originally drafted as a shortstop, it was always known that he would have to move off the position due to his lack of speed and limited lateral agility. His defensive instincts, reaction times, soft hands, and strong arm did make him an excellent fit at third base which is where the Mets moved him to full-time in 2018. To be quiet honest, with the significant amount of depth the organization has at the shortstop position, having a high upside prospect at third is actually more beneficial. Unfortunately, preliminary reports about his defense at the hot corner were mixed and he did commit 13 errors in only 54 starts. However, this should be expected of a player who’s playing the position for the first time in his life. The important thing here is that Vientos is going to continue getting reps at the hot corner and is already hard at work trying to improve as he detailed in an off-season interview with MiLB.com’s Sam Dykstra.
“At shortstop, you’ve got more time to get to a ball. At third, if you’re not ready, that’s how balls get by you. That took some time to adjust to, but I’ve been working a lot on my footwork and fielding this off-season to keep getting better there.” – Mark Vientos.
Based on his strong performance in the Appalachian League and how the Mets have handled high upside prospects in the past, I would fully expect Vientos to skip (SS-A) Brooklyn and open 2019 as the starting third baseman for the (A) Columbia Fireflies. A strong performance there would very easily vault him into the MLB Top 100 Prospect Listing.
Its been a long time since the Mets have had a high upside third baseman in their organization as they haven’t had one ranked in the MLB Top Prospects List since David Wright in 2004. Vientos certainly has the present day tools and the potential upside to break that long drought.
Editor’s Note: Jarred Kelenic, Justin Dunn, Luis Santana, Ross Adolph, Bobby Wahl, Adam Hill, Gerson Bautista, and Felix Valerio were all in our original Top 50 before they were traded.
Previous Rankings
50-46 Led by Michael Paez
45-41 Led by Ranfy Adon
40-36 Led by Anthony Dirocie
35-31 Led by Ryley Gilliam
30-26 Led by Chris Viall
25 Carlos Cortes
24 Ali Sanchez
23 Eric Hanhold
22 Luis Carpio
21 Freddy Valdez
20 Walker Lockett
19 Junior Santos
18 Gavin Cecchini
17 Jordan Humphreys
16 Christian James
15 Tony Dibrell
14 Francisco Alvarez
13 Will Toffey
12 Adrian Hernandez
11 Desmond Lindsay
10 Franklyn Kilome
9 Shervyen Newton
8 Thomas Szapucki
7 Simeon Woods-Richardson
6 Anthony Kay
5 David Peterson
