Ronny Mauricio and Francisco Alvarez represent the New York Mets on Baseball America’s Top 100 Prospects List for 2020.
Baseball America’s top 100 prospects list for 2020 was revealed on Wednesday and two New York Mets made the cut. Shortstop Ronny Mauricio and catcher Francisco Alvarez came in at numbers 66 and 67, respectively.
Mauricio, who is 18 years old, is the top prospect in the Mets organization. The 6-foot-3 skinny switch-hitter was signed by the team as an international free agent in July 2017. At the time, he was ranked as Baseball America’s third-best international prospect.
In 173 games in the minor leagues, Mauricio has slashed .270/.306/.374 with 72 RBI, an OPS of .681, and 188 hits. He spent 2018 with the Gulf Coast League Mets and Kingsport Mets. He spent the entirety of the 2019 season in Single-A with the Columbia Fireflies.
If Mauricio starts off the 2020 season well and can get into a groove, there is a strong chance he will be promoted to Double-A. Even though he is years away from the majors, Mauricio has a very decent shot at becoming a superstar for the Mets in the future.
Even at his young age, it is difficult to criticize any aspect of his game, and that is promising in and of itself.
Alvarez is also 18 years old and is predicted to have a breakout season this year, according to MLB Pipeline. Pipeline referred to him as the best pure hitter in the Mets’ farm system and he exhibits great defensive promise.
He was a rookie in 2019 and split the season between the Gulf Coast League Mets and the Kingsport Mets. With both teams, he slashed a very impressive .312/.407/.510 with an OPS of .916 in 42 games. He also hit seven home runs, walked 21 times and had 26 RBI.
He will almost definitely begin the season in Single-A and if he keeps this up, it will not take him long to reach the Majors. The Mets have not had a decent catching prospect pan out in some time, so fans and the organization are hoping Alvarez is able to meet expectations and become the team’s catcher of the future