As we get closer to the revealing of our collaborative Top 30 Mets prospects, here’s five of my favorite prospects that didn’t make the list.

Thomas Szapucki, LHP

2021 Stats (Syracuse) 0-4, 4.10 ERA, 10 G, 9 GS, 41.2 IP, 1.680 WHIP, 6.0 BB/9, 8.9 K/9
2021 Stats (MLB) 0-0. 14.73 ERA, G, 3.2 IP, 2.727 WHIP, 7.4 BB/9, 9.8 K/9

Szapucki, 25, was once considered one of the steals of the 2015 draft and one of the best prospects in the Mets farm system. He has dropped down these rankings partially due to some control issues but mostly because of injuries.

Szapucki would miss the 2018 season with Tommy John surgery, and then, he would miss the 2020 season due to COVID. That really left him with a handful of 2019 starts and 2021 starts to rehab and get stronger. That all blew up because Szapucki would have to be shut down to have ulner transposition surgery.

If that surgery sounds familiar, it should. It was the exact surgery Jacob deGrom and Steven Matz underwent. As we saw, after both of those pitchers underwent that surgery, they were much better and effective pitchers when they returned to the mound.

For Szapucki, that surgery should give him the opportunity to reclaim his status as a legit pitching prospect with a real Major League future ahead of him. That is largely because Szapucki is a pitcher who can rack up strike outs with 95+ MPH fastball and a curve with great movement.

Jose Peroza, INF

2021 Stats (St. Lucie/Brooklyn) .254/.365/421, 22 2B, 3B, 12 HR, 64 RBI

Peroza, 21, has been on the periphery of the top 30 rankings for a few years now, and honestly, it he performed better for High-A Brooklyn, he might have cracked the list this season. Really, it was a tale of two seasons for him.

After missing the 2020 season due to the COVID shutdown, Peroza began the season with St. Lucie where he posted a strong 136 wRC+. We not only saw him continue to drive the ball, but we saw him make an important step with his plate discipline with a 14.7 BB%.

Things did not go so well in Brooklyn, where his wRC+ dropped to 82. However, he remained a strong 8.7 BB% while his ISO was .165. Strikeouts did remain an issue for him there with his striking out 29.3% of the time.

Peroza is an intriguing prospect. He is developing a better strike zone discipline while maintaining power. He has some swing and miss, but he’s shown the ability to adapt at the plate. He hasn’t settled at an infield position, but he has the speed to cover second and third. The trick for him now is to put it all together and have the breakout season he’s truly capable of having.

Bryce Montes de Oca, RHP

2021 Stats (Brooklyn/Binghamton) 1-3, 4.50 ERA, 28 G, 6 SV, 34.0 IP, 1.471 WHIP, 7.1 BB/9, 12.4 K/9

Montes de Oca, 25, was injury prone in college, and he would not pitch for the Mets after the 2018 draft because he needed rest and more surgeries. Between that and COVID, he would not make his professional debut until this season where his season could be accurately assessed as disappointing.

Lost in that where he struggled with command was just how dominating Montes de Oca can be. During the season, he was able to ramp it up to 102 MPH, and he struck out 47 batters in 34.0 innings pitched. He also has a good slider which also generates swings and misses. Overall, there lies in that arm the ability to dominate coming out of the bullpen. During 2022, he needs to help find a way to harness everything while trying to find a way to avoid the IL.

Luke Ritter, 2B

2021 Stats (Brooklyn) .232/.311/.436, 9 2B, 14 HR, 44 RBI

Ritter, 24, returned to Brooklyn only this time it was High-A instead of a short season league. Unfortunately, instead of repeating that promising first professional season, Ritter was largely a disappointment with a 99 wRC+ despite being old for that level.

Ritter is part of this interesting gray area of prospects we see in baseball. He lost a season with the COVID shutdowns, and with contraction, there were not as many places to send him to help him and other players develop. When you peel it all back, you still see a player who has good power, especially against left-handed pitching. Moreover, he may become an increasingly versatile player who may soon see time in the outfield.

Travis Blankenhorn, 2B/OF

2021 Stats (MLB) .174/.208/.391, 2 2B, HR, 4 RBI
2021 Stats (Triple-A) .246/.354/.456, 11 2B, 10 HR, 35 RBI

Blankenhorn, 25, spent time in the Minnesota Twins, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Mets systems as he was a 40 man roster casualty and waiver wire claim on multiple occasions. The reason why he was put in that spot was many teams saw him as having the potential to be a Major League utility option.

Blankenhorn isn’t someone who can play a set position everyday, but he has experience in all corner positions and second. He can certainly play any of those positions for a game or two or a few innings if needed. That has value.

The same goes for his bat. Blankenhorn has very real power posting exit velocities reaching 108 MPH. He can get up to the plate and drive one out of the park much like he did against JT Brubaker when he hit a three run pinch hit homer for the Mets. Of course, this ability is offset by his high strike out rates which does fortunately come with a decent walk rate.