The Mets’ middle tier of prospects is stronger than ever, and this particular group proves it. All five players possess legitimate upside, featuring two 2025 draft picks alongside three pitchers who could make an impact as early as 2026.

20. RHP Dylan Ross

B/T: R/R               Age: 25 (09/01/2000)
Ht: 6’5″                Wt: 251 lb
ETA:  2026
Acquired: 2022 Amateur Draft, Round 13 Selection (University of Georgia)
2025 Stats: 2-0, 2.17 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 13.3 K/9 (54 IP)

Dylan Ross entered 2025 as one of the more unusual arms in the Mets’ system. After being drafted in 2022, injuries essentially wiped out the first three years of his professional career, leaving him with almost no track record but plenty of physical upside once he finally returned to the mound. After undergoing both Tommy John surgery and a UCL revision, he had logged just a single pro inning entering 2025. Once healthy, he tore through High-A Brooklyn and Double-A Binghamton before dominating Triple-A Syracuse, earning a 40-man roster spot in late September.

On the mound, Ross is a prototypical power reliever with eye-popping stuff but poor command. He features a triple-digit heater that has touched 101 mph and pairs it with two plus secondary pitches. His bread-and-butter is a devastating low-90s splitter. With an exceptionally low spin rate (around 800 rpm), the pitch is a nightmare for hitters, producing a whiff rate near 50% in Triple-A. While his 1.69 ERA in Syracuse and combined 13.33 K/9 across the minors are impressive, the floor remains shaky due to a 5.50 BB/9. If he can find a way to harness his command, his size and quality secondaries give him a real chance to work in higher-leverage innings in Queens by 2026.

Metsmerized Online‘s Mojo Hill interviewed Ross in July of 2025, and what stood out most was his refusal to let setbacks define him. He spends little time dwelling on what went wrong and stays focused on what comes next.

19. RHP Ryan Lambert

B/T: R/R               Age: 23
Ht: 6’3″                Wt: 222 lb
ETA:  2026
Acquired: 2024 Amateur Draft, Round 8 Selection (University of Oklahoma)
2025 Stats: 2-1, 1.62 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 14.6 K/9 (50 IP)

Ryan Lambert is a 23-year-old fireballer who has quickly become the most electric bullpen prospect in the Mets’ system. A self-proclaimed “adrenaline guy,” he made waves even before the draft by setting an MLB Draft League record with a 100.7 mph heater. In his first full professional season in 2025, he flew through High-A Brooklyn and spent most of the year closing for Double-A Binghamton. He’ll enter 2026 as a non-roster invitee to spring training.

Lambert is a strictly two-pitch reliever, but his fastball is terrific. The pitch sits in the upper 90s, has reached 102 mph, and is widely viewed as a 70-grade offering. What makes it truly elite is its vertical ride, which helped him post a 14.58 K/9 and a 39.5% strikeout rate across 50 minor-league innings in 2025. He is currently an extreme fly-ball pitcher (48.8% FB rate in Double-A), which plays at the top of the zone but leaves him vulnerable to the long ball if his control slips. Even so, the fastball-slider combo gives him the ceiling of a primary setup man or closer.

18. SS Antonio Jimenez

B/T: R/R               Age: 21 (06/15/2004)
Ht: 6’1″                Wt: 200 lb
ETA:  2028
Acquired: 2025 Amateur Draft, Round 3 Selection (University of Central Florida)
2025 Stats: .263/.345/.274 (110 PA)

After a rough freshman season at the University of Miami, where he hit just .182, Antonio Jimenez reinvented himself at Central Florida. He erupted in Orlando, posting a .329/.407/.575 slash line with 11 home runs and earning All-Big 12 Second Team honors. The Mets were drawn to his elite physical tools, highlighted by a 60-grade arm that was once clocked at 100 mph from the infield in high school, along with plus raw power. They were able to sign him for an under-slot $564,000.

While the raw tools are tantalizing, Jimenez’s pro debut at Single-A St. Lucie was somewhat underwhelming. Despite some decent raw power, he failed to homer in 26 games and posted a .274 slugging percentage. The issue was clear: a massive 52.4% groundball rate paired with too many infield pop-ups. For Jimenez to become a real threat at the plate, the Mets will need to reshape his batted-ball profile and get him lifting the ball more consistently. Defensively, he has the range and plus-plus arm to stay at shortstop for now, though his 6-foot-1, 200-pound frame points to an eventual move to third base, where that arm would be a major weapon.

17. LHP Zach Thornton

B/T: L/L               Age: 24 (01/17/2002)
Ht: 6’3″               Wt: 170 lb
ETA:  2026
Acquired: 2023 Amateur Draft, Round 5 Selection (Grand Canyon University)
2025 Stats: 6-2, 1.98 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 9.66 K/9 (72 2/3 IP)

Zach Thornton carved up Double-A hitters in 2025, pitching to a 1.98 ERA across 72 2/3 innings before an oblique injury ended his season in June. While he lacks the wow factor of some peers, his elite command and advanced approach to pitching resulted in a minuscule 4% walk rate and a 0.81 WHIP. He works with a five-pitch mix headlined by a low-90s fastball that touches 95-96 mph and a plus cutter. Thornton’s entire profile is built around never beating himself, and his ability to consistently fill the strike zone is a breath of fresh air in a system full of harder throwers who struggle to do just that.

The biggest question with Thornton is his physical ceiling. He’s already 24 and on the smaller side, but the overall package remains appealing. The stuff is solid across the board, giving him a clear path toward becoming a reliable major-league starter. He could reach the big-league rotation as soon as 2027, and with enough opportunity and quality performances, innings in 2026 aren’t out of the question. Left-handed pitchers who combine plus control with sequencing and deception are rare in today’s game, and Thornton fits that profile.

16. RHP Peter Kussow

B/T: R/R               Age: 19 (12/08/2006)
Ht: 6’5″                Wt: 205 lb
ETA:  2030
Acquired: 2025 Amateur Draft, Round 4 Selection (Arrowhead Union High School, Wisconsin)
2025 Stats: No Professional Stats

The Mets lured Peter Kussow away from a Louisville commitment with a significant over-slot bonus of $897,500. He has what some scouts would call a dream build. Kussow has a lanky frame and a deceptive three-quarter delivery that makes his low-90s fastball — which has already touched 97 — look even faster. While he is still growing into his body, his high-spin slider is already a strong weapon, with a sharp two-plane break that generates elite swing-and-miss rates.

What might separate Kussow from a typical velocity-first prep arm is his feel for a legitimate four-pitch mix. Evaluators have spoken highly of a 12-6 curveball and a changeup that shows good fade. Because he comes from a cold-weather state, his delivery can occasionally lose its rhythm, leading to inconsistent command, which remains his biggest hurdle.

Baseball America noted that the Mets do not have a strong track record with high school pitchers, but MLB Pipeline recently named Kussow the organization’s potential breakout prospect for 2026.