Photo By Ernest Dove
Mets catching prospect Patrick Mazeika has been promoted from Single-A St. Lucie to Double-AA Bingamton. At this moment, there has been no corresponding move named. One is expected with catching prospect Tomas Nido in Double-A.
In 100 games for St. Lucie, Mazeika is hitting .287/.389/.406 with 21 doubles, seven homers, and 50 RBI. His power numbers have fallen off since he found himself as the everyday catcher. It should be noted that while his power numbers have fallen off, his OBP has remained steady, and Mazeika has made continued strides behind the plate.
Mazeika was the Mets 2015 eighth round draft pick from Stetson University, which is the same college attended by Mets ace Jacob deGrom. He was recently ranked by MMN as the Mets 25th best prospect.
Wow! Did not realize: “Mazeika was the Mets 2015 first round draft pick.” I thought he was an 8th round pick.
He was the Mets 7th round pick in 2015.
Mets 7th pick, but 8th round. Mets did not have a 1st round draft choice.
That’s good. He has a good eye at the plate and can come into his own in the position. Not every catching prospect can be Buster Posey but a guy with a good OBP with decent defense (hears hoping) and small pop (8-10 Hrs). Nido is likely getting called up to Triple A, maybe that will help with his power & can sort his hitting out. Love that both these guys don’t strike out a lot.
I wonder if a deal with Rene Rivera is imminent. otherwise why start the call ups? If Nido is going to Vegas then Plawecki must be coming up to the show.
I wondered about that, too. Thats one explanation. Another is this: Mazeika played in only 70 games laast year, and only 45 behind the plate. He’s already up to 100 GP this year and started 75 at catcher. He may be starting to wear down. This move allows them to cut back on his playing tiem the rest of the way, and at the same time bolster Binghamton’s roster for the playoffs. With Colton Plaia on the DL, Mazeika represents an upgrade over Tyler Moore who is currently Bingo’s #2 catcher. I agree that it sounds silly. But the Mets have frequently favored Bingo in the past, and they’ve stated that they do think the experience is valuable to the players.
“His power numbers have fallen off since he found himself as the everyday catcher.”
You try catching all summer in the Florida State League and see what happens to your power numbers.
And that, I believe, is exactly why he’s being promoted: teams do, in fact, have innings or games limits on minro leageu catchers, as well. This move allows them to scale back his playing time while still furthering his development. He’s played substantially more this year than any other in his young career.