Anthony Kay/Photo by Ed Delany, MMN

Today is Opening Day for each of the Mets full season minor league affiliates. The Mets will send three left-handed pitchers to the mound, and three are Mets draft picks with two of them coming from the 2018 draft

MMN‘s Michael Mayer reports RHP Simeon Woods Richardson will be the Opening Day starter for the Columbia Fireflies. W0ods Richarson, 18, was the Mets second round pick in last year’s draft, and hd showed a lot of promise being able to ramp his fastball to the upper 90s. In four starts and three relief appearances between Gulf Coast and Kingsport, he was 1-0 with a 1.56 ERA, 1.096 WHIP, and a 13.5 K/9.

St. Lucie will send 2018 seventh round pick LHP Kevin Smith to the mound. Last year, he made three starts and nine relief appearances for Brooklyn. With his repeatable delivery and good control over his fastball, change, and slider, he was 4-1 with a 0.76 ERA, 0.761 WHIP, and a 10.6 K/9.

With LHP Anthony Kay impressing the Mets during Spring Training, he is getting ball on Opening Day for the Binghamton Rumble Ponies. After being drafted in the first round of the 2016 draft, Kay missed the entire 2016 and 2017 season due to Tommy John surgery. The now 24 year old made his professional debut last season. In 23 starts between Columbia and St. Lucie, he was 7-11 with a 4.26 ERA, 1.410 WHIP, and a 9.0 K/9. New Binghamton Manager Kevin Boles said of Kay:

I love how he competes.  He’s aggressive to the zone. Fastball to both sides of the plate. Feel for a change-up and breaking ball. He’s a guy that pitches with a pretty good tempo.

So, there’s a lot to like there. I got to see him at Major League camp. He fit right in. Didn’t have any fear against Major League hitters, and hopefully that carries over here. (WBNG News 12).

Finally, in their inaugural season, the Syracuse Mets will send former Major League All-Star LHP Hector Santiago to the mound. Santiago had been in the mix for a bullpen spot until late in Spring Training. Last year, he performed better in the bullpen going 3-1 with a 3.87 ERA, 1.480 WHIP, and a 10.4 K/9 as a reliever.

At some point this season, we may see Santiago pitch for the Major League club either as a spot starter or in the bullpen. If he gets off to a fast start, the same could be said for Kay who impressed the team during Spring Training. Overall, this is a very interesting group of pitchers who are getting a well earned honor.