The New York Mets and first-round pick Brett Baty have agreed to a contract and the 19-year-old is already mashing dingers at Citi Field.
Earlier this month, the New York Mets drafted third baseman Brett Baty with the No. 12 overall in the MLB draft. Baty, 19, is a Lake Travis, TX native and won Texas’ Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year during the 2017-2018 season when he was a high school junior. Baty was committed to play for the University of Texas, but that won’t happen anymore.
On Friday, the Mets came to terms with Baty on a contract, as first reported by Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.
As promised, the Mets have come to terms on a below-slot deal with first-round draft pick Brett Baty. He'll be at Citi Field on Saturday to take batting practice with the big club.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) June 15, 2019
The slot value was recommended at $4.366 million. The amount of money is unclear at this time but is known to be below that value.
Baty posted a batting average of .608 with 19 home runs and 50 RBIs in his senior year. He took batting practice on Saturday at Citi Field and was exactly as advertised.
Mets first-rounder Brett Baty is at Citi Field today, taking BP and putting on a show. He parked one onto the Shea Bridge, and another to the upper deck in right BEYOND the entire seating area. pic.twitter.com/cULHWWoUQl
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) June 15, 2019
New York also selected 18-year-old pitchers Josh Wolf and Matthew Allan in the second and third rounds, respectively. Wolf is from Houston, TX and is currently committed to Texas A&M. Allan, on the other hand, is from Seminole High School in Florida. He has committed to play for the University of Florida.
Since the Mets were able to sign Baty for less than his slot value, they could have a better chance at signing Wolf and Allan. The Mets should be happy with how the top of their draft unfolded.
Baty is expected to be a force in the lineup when his time comes. Mets fans won’t see him playing in Flushing anytime soon, but he’s a beacon of hope for the future nonetheless.