(Jacob Resnick/Mets Minors)
Luis Carpio, the 21-year-old Mets middle infield prospect, spent all but one game of the 2018 season with the St. Lucie Mets. The outlier was four at-bats with the Binghamton Rumble Ponies on the final day of the season.
Carpio returned to St. Lucie to open 2019, looking to improve on a disappointing campaign. It only took 31 games to force the organization’s hand, as he was promoted once again to Binghamton and made his first appearance in Trenton on Sunday.
Carpio appears to have brought his hot bat up north; he went 2-for-3 with a home run, his first at the Double-A level, and a pair of walks in the Rumble Ponies’ 7-to-1 victory.
Luis Carpio’s first Double-A home run: https://t.co/hhT5v5rIOd pic.twitter.com/7Ja8MCtlSC
— Jacob Resnick (@Jacob_Resnick) May 19, 2019
Outstanding performances at a repeat level certainly carry a sizable asterisk, but Carpio is still so young that he can’t really be faulted for needing time to figure things out. If not for a good August, his 2018 line would have looked a lot worse than where it ended: .219/.290/.364 with an OPS in the Florida State League’s 28th percentile.
Carpio, who had burst onto the prospect scene with a successful debut with Kingsport in 2015, virtually had his 2016 season wiped out due to shoulder surgery. It wasn’t expected to take three years for a full recovery, but it’s a welcome sight for those who have followed him since the pre-operation days.
Out of 90 FSL’ers with 100 plate appearances, Carpio’s .822 OPS ranked tenth before Sunday’s promotion. Despite a high BABIP and low power numbers, he’s improved his approach overall, striking out less, and increasing line-drive, up-the-middle contact. Carpio has also come through when it matters most, driving in 31 percent of runners in scoring position compared to just 17 percent a year ago.
As crazy as it sounds, Carpio is playing against the clock. He won’t turn 22 until July but the 2020 season is his last before reaching minor league free agency. A permanent promotion to Binghamton is a good start, but he’ll need to maintain his increased level of play to boost his chances of lasting in the organization.
