Mets shortstop prospect Amed Rosario has had a breakout season at the plate and continues to get national accolades. He recently played in the Future’s Game, Keith Law recently ranked him as the number 14 overall prospect in all of baseball, and the Mets have called him untouchable in trade discussions thereby assuring he is going to be the Mets shortstop of the future.
Given the fact that Rosario is hitting .354/.405/.525 with nine doubles and four triples in 26 games at AA Binghamton after dominating the Florida State League, the natural question arises as to when he will get called-up to AAA.
There’s one problem with aggressively promoting Rosario right now. Gavin Cecchini is currently the shortstop for the AAA Las Vegas 51s.
The 22-year old Cecchini was the Mets 2012 first round draft choice (12th overall). He is a well regarded prospect in his own right being listed as the 89th best prospect in all of baseball by Keith Law heading into the season. He was also MLB.com’s 87th best prospect.
He was ranked so high as he hit .317/.377/.442 hitter with 26 doubles, four triples, seven homers, and 51 RBI for AA Binghamton last year. His play in AA merited him a promotion to AAA where he has so far hit .313/.390/.438 with 17 doubles, two triples, four homers, and 40 RBI. Overall, Cecchini’s statistics alone establish that he’s a worthwhile prospect that should not yet be pushed aside.
Ultimately, statistics aside, Cecchini projects to be a good to very good major league hitter. He could quite possibly be the best contact hitter in the Mets’ minor league system. Cecchini has a nice compact swing who hits the ball with authority from gap to gap. In many ways, he reminds you of a right-handed younger Daniel Murphy at the plate. When his body begins to fill out some of those doubles may begin to turn into home runs at the big league level. While he may not be an all-star, he could very well be an above average regular.
There is one problem with Cecchini. Since he has been in the Mets system, he has mostly struggled defensively. This season is no different with him having an extremely poor .918 fielding percentage. While he has been willing to put in the work and do extra work on the side with Wally Backman, the results just aren’t there.
Given the presence of Rosario, the natural inclination would be for the Mets to just move Cecchini to second base. This would create room for Rosario at shortstop, and the two can begin building a chemistry together as a future double play combination.
However, the Mets cannot do that as the Mets second baseman of the future, Dilson Herrera, is currently Cecchini’s double play partner in Las Vegas. The Mets have long been high on Herrera. Two years ago, the Mets gave him an 18 game cup of coffee due to a number of injuries.
Last year, the Mets called him up to the majors rather quickly when both Murphy and David Wright went down with injuries. While Herrera didn’t produce much during either short stint in the majors, the tools are all there to be a very good major league hitter. He is still only 22-years old, and he has hit .302/.356/.490 while playing in AAA.
And yet, there are some warning flags with Herrera. While he has good hands, he does not project to be a plus defender at second base. Additionally, he has seemingly taken a step back in AAA this year hitting only .277/.331/.471 in what has been an injury plagued year.
He has become much less patient at the plate seemingly swinging at everything instead of working the count and getting a pitch to drive. It’s somewhat troubling, but he is still only 22 years old, and he has shown he can be a terrific hitter. It is way too early to give up on player who can be a terrific hitter who has plus power for a middle infield position. Accordingly, you can’t just move Cecchini to second.
So what do you do with Cecchini? There are no easy answers.
The Mets could try to move him to third base where he could serve as insurance against David Wright‘s back. Given his lateral mobility and his arm, Cecchini could play the position. However, given Cecchini’s lack of true home run power, he doesn’t have the type of bat that could play at a corner infield position. Furthermore, removing Cecchini from shortstop would only serve to diminish his potential trade value.
Indeed, the Mets could look to trade him like they are apparently willing to do with any prospect not named Amed Rosario. However, if the Mets were to do that, they would be parting with a player who has shown he could be a viable major league player.
If the Mets were to part with Cecchini, they would also be losing a big insurance policy. Rosario and Herrera could falter or get injured like some can’t miss prospects do. In the event that happens, Cecchini could prove to be a valuable piece who takes advantage of his opportunity.
Mets fans saw this happen as recently as 2013 when Jacob deGrom established himself as a front line starting pitcher while Rafael Montero became an also ran. In essence, it is important to have depth, and Cecchini is certainly that.
Still, there is no doubt that Rosario and Herrera are the better prospects right now, and you cannot have Cecchini blocking their path to the majors no matter how good Cecchini is. The Mets could make him a third baseman or utility player thereby making him a better option for the big league club, but also diminishing his trade value.
Overall, there are seemingly no good answers as to what the Mets should do with Cecchini. In some ways, it is a dilemma. In others, it is a good problem to have. Ultimately, it may just be prudent for the Mets to sit tight and see how this all plays out.
How about seeing if he can play the outfield this year?
I like him better then herrera. His strike outs are a reday flag for me. If herrera has the higher value I would trade him in a package for a premier outfield bat. I like the guy who rarely strikes. If his bat is compared to Murphy with better defense sign me up.
Why can’t you just switch him to 2nd base in the majors? The reality is Dilson hasn’t earned it and he isn’t the hair apparent
I agree, I don’t see any issue with him playing some in the OF. I would like to see him play some games at 2B as well.
I think he should see some time at 2B but you are selling Herrera way short and giving up too early on him.
I would still try him at 3rd. He Mets don’t have a real third baseman on the way anytime soon. If he hits .300 with 10 HR I’ll take that over anything Cambell would give you. Plus what are we going to do next year when we have an infield of top prospects?
You still have Matt Reynolds as a back up, if they trade Cecchini. I am not comparing Matt Reynolds to Checchini, it is just that he gives you depth.
Cecchini’s bat has been looking like a first round pick after a really crappy start. His glove is good and his arm can play anywhere. His problem is he takes two steps before throwing the ball to first. On a routine grounder the batter should be out by two strides but those two steps makes it a close play at first so Cecc uncorks that arm and fires a 100mph heater across the diamond….causing a boat load of errors.
Easy fix imo but if I see that as some shmuck in the stands, you would think the organization would see it as well. He’ll be given every opportunity to succeed.
Saw the exact same thing last year with him in Binghamton. Double tap all the time.
“they would be parting with a player who has shown he could be a viable major league player.” I´ll nitpick this and say that he hasn´t shown that he can be a viable ML player, as he hasn´t yet had a single AB in the bigs.
That said, I agree with most of the article. But we´ll be able to answer this question a little better on Monday after the trade deadline.