It was a successful season for the St. Lucie Mets as they went to the Florida State League playoffs for the first time since 2012. Led by Luis Rojas the Mets went 76-61 this season and won the second half division title. In the playoffs they got swept by the Bradenton Marauders in a best-of-three series.

As a team St. Lucie had the second best batting average (.264) and second best on-base percentage (.338) in the league. On the pitching side the Mets had the fourth best ERA (3.24) and fifth best WHIP at 1.29.

There were some great prospects who played for the St. Lucie Mets this season including our number one prospect Amed Rosario  before his June promotion to Double-A Binghamton. Rosario played 66 games for the St. Lucie Mets and hit .309/.359/.442 with three home runs, ten doubles, eight triples and drove in 40 runs. He was the starting shortstop in the FSL all-star game. The biggest improvement Rosario showed with St. Lucie was his ability to cut down on strikeouts. In 2015 Rosario struck out 17,5 % of the time while, this season he struck out just 12,4 % which was lowest in the FSL when he got promoted. Rosario was named our Position Player of the Year.

Another player who played a half season for the St. Lucie Mets was RBI machine David Thompson. The third baseman was promoted from the Fireflies to the St. Lucie Mets during at the end of June. Thompson played 55 games for St. Lucie hitting .265/.321/.412 with six home runs and 37 RBIs. Thompson hit two home runs in the second half division clincher. For the full season Thompson proved to be a RBI Machine, he collected 95 RBIs in just 116 games. He has made a name for himself as maybe the Mets future third baseman this season.

The best St. Lucie player who was with the team all season was Tomas Nido. The catcher made a name for himself this season as was showed on our Midseason Prospect list. Nido went from #74 before the season to our #14 midseason. Nido capped off his impressive season by winning the FSL batting title as he hit .320 to beat out Richard Urena who hit .305 for the season. Nido didn’t only hit well (.320/.357/.459) he also played great defense behind the plate. Most noticeably his ability to throw out runners trying to steal, he caught 42% would be basestealers.

Wuilmer Becerra had a tough season staying healthy, but when he was on the field he performed. Our #5 Mets Midseason prospect had trouble with a sore shoulder and was limited to just 13 games in the field. He had surgery later in the year which cut his season short. Becerra dealt with a partially torn labrum in his right shoulder, which limited his power. Still Becerra was able to hit for a good average. He hit .312/.341/.393 in 65 games. He hit just one home run and drove in 34 for the season.

Wizard with the glove, Luis Guillorme, hit his first pro home run this season. After a great year with Savannah the prior season, Guillorme followed with a decent season with St. Lucie hitting .263/.332/.315 playing his best position after Rosario got his promotion. He and Rosario were one of the best middle infield defense combos in the first half of the season.

On the pitching side, undrafted free agent Casey Delgado went 8-3 with a 3.39 ERA for St. Lucie to help solidify the rotation. Chris Flexen and Josh Prevost both had uneven seasons. Flexen showed his dominance in some great starts but, was hit hard in some as well. Overall Flexen pitched to a 10-9 record with a 3.56 ERA thanks to two starts at the end of the regular season were he went five scoreless. Flexen got hit hard in the first game of the playoffs as he allowed five runs on nine hits in four innings. Josh Prevost battled with injuries during the 2016 season, he went 4-8 with a 4.26 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP.

The St. Lucie rotation got help during the season, after the promotion of P.J. Conlon who was even better with the St. Lucie Mets as he was with the Columbia Fireflies. In 12 starts he went 4-1 with a 1.41 ERA. The lefty with the great changeup pitched to a very impressive 0.96 WHIP. Overall, Conlon went 12-2 with a 1.62 ERA in 142 innings pitched.

Another starter that was  impressive for the St. Lucie Mets was Ricky Knapp. The 24-year old right-hander started the season with St. Lucie and went 9-4 with a 2.14 ERA in 105.1 innings pitched. Knapp did not overpower hitters striking out just 65 over those innings. The highlight of his season was the complete game seven inning shutout on May the 18th. He allowed just three hits and no walks in that win. He also went on to make starts for Binghamton and Las Vegas.

One of the biggest strengths was the bullpen with a lot of pitchers with very good seasons in 2016. A couple of lefties stand out as Paul Paez (who was later promoted) and Ben Griset both pitched well. Paez pitched to a 1.00 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in 36 innings with St. Lucie. Paez did struggle after his promotion with a 9.15 ERA for Binghamton. Griset went 4-2 with a 1.80 ERA in 60 innings pitched. He struck out 66 and had a WHIP of 1.03.

The closer this season was Corey Taylor who went 20 for 23 in save opportunities and pitched to a 4-5 record with a 1.87 ERA. Corey Taylor shows a deceptive motion which it is really hard to pick up the ball. His motion looks a bit like Tyler Clippard his delivery.

Placement among qualifying league leaders in parentheses 

Hitting Leaders

• Runs: John Mora 63 (11th in the Florida State League)
• Hits: Luis Guillorme  116 (tied 14th)
• Doubles: Tomas Nido 23 (tied 13th)
• Triples: Amed Rosario  8 (tied 4th)
• Home Runs: Jhoan Urena 9 (tied 22nd)
• RBI: Kevin Taylor 58 (11th)
• Average: Tomas Nido .320 (1st)
• OBP: Kevin Taylor .386 (3rd)
• SLG: Kevin Taylor .404 (tied 14th)
• Stolen Bases: Patrick Biondi 26 (5th)

Pitching Leaders

• Wins: Chris Flexen 10 (tied 6th)
• ERA: Chris Felxen 3.56 (tied 10th)
• Appearances: Corey Taylor 45 (tied 5th)
• Starts: Chris Flexen 25 (tied 1st)
• Complete Games: Andrew Church, Ricky Knapp and Chris Flexen 1 (tied 9th)
• Saves: Corey Taylor 20 (2nd)
• Innings Pitched: Chris Flexen 134 (tied 8th)
• Strikeouts: Scarlyn Reyes 96 (14th)
• WHIP: Chris Flexen 1.31 (11th)
• Holds: Robert Coles 7 (tied 7th)

Overall it was successful season with lots of positive notes. But there were also some under performers this season. Jhoan Urena disappointed despite a much better second half. The switch hitting corner infielder hit .225/.301/.350 overall but, his .257/.340/.406 in the second half showed the promise he still has. Another player who under performed was Scarlyn Reyes. Reyes went 8-10 with a 5.90 ERA in 119 innings pitched. After he was placed in the pen he did show more velocity on his fastball (reaching 96) but, his numbers were not pretty out of the pen as well, pitching to a 9.90 ERA in ten relief innings.

What made this season even better for me personally was my experience to see the St. Lucie Mets in Tradition Field this summer. I went to the game on July the 26th when St. Lucie beat Bradenton by a 6-3 final score. I opened the game with a Dutch version of ”PLAY BALL” and met a ton of players. To be able to be a part of a second half win it made it even more special to me when they won the division title.

Previous season reviews: Binghamton, DSL , GCL, Las Vegas, Columbia, Kingsport