The St. Lucie Mets have released their 2018 Opening Day roster. That roster will be led by Chad Kreuter, who is returning for his second season as manager. Marc Valdes and Joel Fuentes will also return in their positions as as the pitching coach and hitting coach.

Pitchers (15)

Adam Atkins – The Mets 2016 18th round draft pick continues to surprise. He was great for Columbia last year with a sparkling 0.86 ERA, and for his career has a 2.60 ERA, 9.6 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9.

Matt Blackham – The righty possesses filthy stuff and was absolutely dominant for Columbia last year with a 1.43 ERA and 13 K/9 in 56.2 innings. He ahs followed that great year with a terrific stint in minor league camp.

Gary Cornish – His strikeouts were way down in Columbia compared to his dominant Brooklyn campaign, but he’s still posted very good numbers in his brief career so far and will look build upon that success in St. Lucie.

Justin Dunn – Dunn struggled in his first full season as a starter posting a 5.00 ERA and 1.563 WHIP. One thing to note is after he had a brief stint in the bullpen to work some things out, he had an improved six start stretch which saw him go 1-2 with a 3.52 ERA and a 1.402 WHIP.

Mike Gibbons – Despite struggling to an 8.62 ERA in 15.2 innings in St. Lucie last year, Gibbons earns another assignment to High-A. He will look to get his career back on track after getting Tommy John surgery in 2016.

Harol Gonzalez – He continues to be an innings eater who can go deep into games. Last year, he led the South Atlantic League in both complete games and innings per start (20 starts minimum).

Gabriel Llanes – Llanes isn’t overpowering, but has done a nice job of limiting walks and home runs throughout his career and in Columbia last year. Going forward he’ll need to get more soft contact to allow less hits.

Johnny Magliozzi – Coming off two very good seasons with Columbia and St. Lucie, he will look to continue the success he had last year with a 3.19 ERA, 8.1 K/9 and only 1.9 BB/9.

Thomas McIlraith – The former 20th round pick doesn’t light up the radar gun and has had an up-and-down career, but dominated in Kingsport in 2015 and pitched well in Columbia last year. A full year in St. Lucie should be good for him.

Stephen Nogosek – Nogosek was one of the three relievers received in exchange for Addison Reed. Nogosek was dominant in the Sally League with a 2.55 ERA. He would struggle in High-A pitching to a 4.54 ERA in his time between the Carolina League (Boston) and St. Lucie.

Matt Pobereyko – The Mets signed Pobereyko during the beginning of the season after an astoundingly dominant stint in Independent ball, and he had a very successful year in Columbia, putting up a 3.15 ERA and 13.9 K/9. His only issues in the past have been regarding control, so as long as he can keep his walks down, he has a chance to be even more dominant. His great performance also carried over into the Arizona Fall League, where he didn’t allow a run in 11.2 innings.

Josh Prevost – The former 5th-round pick does a nice job of limiting walks, but his giving up 100 hits in 76 innings for St. Lucie last year is concerning. He isn’t overpowering, so he will have to try to induce more weak contact.

Blake Taylor – The former Pittsburgh Pirates 2nd round pick has produced decent results at times, but specifically will have to work on his command.

Joe Zanghi – In two seasons with Brooklyn and Columbia, he has posted a 1.88 ERA with 10.8 K/9. His control is an issue, but he made strides last year reducing his walk rate from 4.6 BB/9 in Brooklyn to a 3.8 BB/9 in Columbia.

Catchers (2)

Anthony Dimino – Since getting drafted in 2015, Dimino has seen time at catcher, first, second, third, and left field. He has shown a good arm behind the plate throwing out 31% of base stealers, but he still has work to do in the other areas of his game to earn a right to stay back there full-time. With his having a .407 OBP last year, the Mets may give him every chance to prove himself.

Jose Garcia – The 22 year old is well regarded as a strong defensive catcher, and he impressed by throwing out 40% of base stealers last year. He also took steps forward offensively last season after he was called up from Columbia to St. Lucie. In 40 games for St. Lucie, he hit .272/.351/.325.

Infielders (7)

Brandon Brosher – Another catcher who has seen time at multiple positions, Brosher finally started to show some of his impressive raw power in Columbia last year. He’s always had a good walk rate, but he’s also dealt with strikeout problems that have limited his offensive performance. If he can cut down the strikeouts and prove that last year’s power surge was legitimate, he could be an intriguing under-the-radar prospect to pay attention to.

Dale Burdick – The versatile infielder saw time at St. Lucie, Binghamton, and Las Vegas last year. He’s shown himself to be quite a good fielder, especially, at second base. Unfortunately, as evidenced by a .217/.310/.369 batting line last year, his offense has not quite caught up to his defense.

Luis Carpio – Another year removed from shoulder surgery, Carpio will need to start to show a little more pop, but at the ripe age of 20, he’s got plenty of time to tap into his potential. Due to his defensive struggles and the presence of top prospect Gimenez, he will likely play almost exclusively at second base, although he could still provide some versatility by playing shortstop in a pinch if he had to.

J.J. Franco – Son of former Met John Franco, J.J. was released by the Braves in July before being signed by the Mets. While he has received limited playing time in his minor league career, the 5’9″ utility infielder gets on base. Last year, he had a .381 OBP in Columbia.

Andres Gimenez – After tearing up the Dominican State League, the young top prospect had a solid if unspectacular stateside debut. At just 19 years old and currently considered a fringe-top 100 prospect in all of baseball, it will be exciting to see how Gimenez carries his tools to the next level.

Michael Paez – Paez’s hot start in Columbia last season did not translate into success in a second half call-up to St. Lucie. Paez is both versatile, and he has the most promising power among the middle infielders. If he repeats his offensive breakout in Columbia, he will see plenty of playing time between second and third base.

Dash Winningham – Winningham is coming off two straight mediocre years in Columbia, but nonetheless will likely receive a promotion to St. Lucie, where he will try to fill the big shoes of Peter Alonso at first base.

Outfielders (4)

Gene Cone – While Cone has not had an offensive breakout season yet, he has shown an excellent eye at the plate with a 13.0% walk rate last year.

Desmond Lindsay – After a great 2016 in Columbia, Lindsay would struggle offensively. During the course of the season, it was discovered he had a nerve issue in his elbow which required surgery. With that issue now having been addressed, he is once again poised to become the five tool outfielder and offensive machine the Mets believed him to be when he was drafted.

Ian Strom – Strom had a very strong offensive performance in 2017, mostly for Columbia (.294/.370/.462), but struggled in a small sample in St. Lucie. The 6’1″, 209 pound 23-year-old will try to hit his way into the starting lineup and the Mets’ future plans as he will also provide versatility being able to play all three outfield positions.

Jacob Zanon – A 15th round draft pick in 2016, Zanon played most of last year in Columbia, after a hot start, he suffered an injury, and he would have a .668 OPS. His play did not improve much after a call-up to St. Lucie. Hopefully, with a full healthy season in St. Lucie, we will see Zanon have a breakout season.

Inactives (2)

Jordan Humphreys – Likely out for the entire season due to Tommy John surgery, Humphreys was on a tear when he got hurt. He has been nothing but successful in his minors pitching career thus far, with a 2.58 ERA, 9.4 K/9 and 1.6 BB/9, and was even better than that in 11 starts for Columbia he had last year. Due to the Mets typically using 18 months to rehab Tommy John, we will likely not see Humphreys pitch again until 2019.

Colby Woodmansee – Last year, Woodmansee struggled in what was the first injury plagued season he ever had as a baseball player. Unfortunately, the talented infielder who had a standout 2016 campaign right after he was drafted continues to deal with injury issues.

Analysis

St. Lucie is the spot where some of the Mets best prospects are with Dunn, Gimenez, and Lindsay ready to take the next step in their development. The Mets have a lot at stake with each of these prospects, and the organization is hoping for a big year from this trio.

Behind this top tier group of prospects is a group of intriguing prospects with some very good tools. Zanon and Strom have terrific speed. Paez has shown good power for a middle infielder. Gonzalez has shown the ability to pitch and pitch deep into games. Cornish is very stingy when it comes to yielding walks. The catchers do a good job throwing out base runners.

Speaking of the catchers, it is interesting how the Mets decided to list Dimino as a catcher but not Brosher. Between the two, Brosher has been the one used more as a catcher than at the other defensive positions. Perhaps, this is a way to help revive Brosher’s bat. It could also be looked at as a way for the Mets to invest more in Dimino, who has done a good job getting on base.

Considering the Mets organizational depth at the position, it should come as no surprise this is a bullpen to watch. Nogosek was one of the six right-handed relievers obtained at the trade deadline last year. Atkins, Blackham, Poboreyko, and Zanghi continue to put up terrific numbers in the bullpen. And, yes, that bullpen becomes all the more formidable in the even the team does eventually decide to transition Dunn to the bullpen. Ultimately, that may become the biggest storyline for an interesting St. Lucie roster.