Another homegrown arm on display in AFL

With a starting rotation including Jacob deGrom, Noah Syndergaard, Zack Wheeler and Steven Matz, the New York Mets have been a model organization when it comes to developing homegrown pitching. David Peterson may not fit the same mold as the aforementioned hard-throwing pitchers, but the former first-round pick isn’t too far away from joining them in the Major Leagues.

Peterson is the Mets’ top-ranked pitching prospect in this year’s Arizona Fall League and highlights a deep Mets AFL squad that features seven players from the organization’s Top 30 Prospects list.

Selected for this year’s Fall League on the heels of his first Double-A campaign, Peterson compiled a 4.19 ERA while posting 122 strikeouts against 37 walks in 116 innings for Binghamton this past season. It was the second full-season campaign for the 23-year-old lefty, whom the Mets took with the No. 20 overall pick in the 2017 Draft out of the University of Oregon.

“I wasn’t necessarily surprised,” Peterson, who is ranked No. 7 on the Mets' Top 30 Prospects list, said when asked about the Mets’ decision to send him to the AFL. “I knew that they wanted more innings out of me,” he continued, “and I was very grateful for the opportunity when they called and said they wanted to send me here.”

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Although Peterson put up solid numbers at Binghamton, his overall season in the Eastern League also proved a valuable learning experience as he worked to refine his game against more advanced hitters.

“I learned a lot about sticking to who you are and what kind of player you are,” said Peterson, reflecting on his season. “Slider usage went up this year -- that was one thing the organization wanted, so I threw a lot of more of those and used them to my advantage.”

Peterson’s increased slider usage had a noticeable effect on his performance. Specifically, his strikeout rate jumped from 8.1 K/9 in his first full season to 9.5 this year in Double-A. On the other hand, throwing more sliders meant that he also threw fewer sinkers, and as a result his 64.5 percent ground-ball rate from 2018 -- which was the third-best mark in the Minors among qualified pitchers -- dipped to 53 percent in ’19.

“I’m not a guy who’s going to break the radar gun or anything like that,” said the 6-foot-6, 240-pound southpaw. “Using what I have -- the command that I have and the four pitches -- I think is something that’s a strength of mine. As long I stick to that, I think I can go up against anybody.”

Now pitching for the Scottsdale Scorpions in the Fall League, Peterson has been one of the circuit’s more successful starters in the early going, tossing 6 1/3 scoreless frames across his first two starts in the desert. He’s racked up four strikeouts in both outings while allowing just five total hits.

With a successful turn in the AFL followed by a likely bump up to Triple-A in 2020, Peterson knows he’s not too far away from being ready to help the Mets in the Major Leagues. And while he views himself as a starting pitcher, he also believes that he can contribute in whatever role may be required.

“I’m looking forward to getting to Queens as fast as I can,” he said. “However they ask for my help, I’ll be able to do it.”

Mets hitters in the AFL

Andres Gimenez, SS/2B (No. 3, MLB No. 92) -- Gimenez, 21, was overmatched in last year’s Fall League (.125 average in 19 games), but is already faring better this fall after spending a full season in Double-A. He struggled at Binghamton during the first half but finished the season on a high note, slashing .266/.312/.434 with 17 XBH (5 HR) and 12 steals over his final 50 contests.

Luis Carpio, 2B/SS (No. 28) -- Carpio broke out and hit a career-high 12 homers in 2018 and although that number dipped to just four in 2019, his overall slash live improved and Carpio made strides in his feel to hit and his discipline at the plate. The infielder, who hit .219/.290/.364 last year, put up a slash line of .282/.361/.380 this season. On the other side of the ball, the 22-year-old is a solid defender who certainly has the skill to play shortstop, but has primarily played second after having shoulder surgery in 2016.

Patrick Mazeika, C/1B (No. 26) – Returning to Double-A this past season after slashing .231/.328/.363 with nine homers in his first Eastern League campaign in 2018, Mazeika, an eighth-round pick in 2015, showed a more impactful bat as he slashed .245/.312/.426 with career highs in home runs (16) and RBIs (69). He’s an athletic defender with solid catch-and-throw skills behind the plate and also received positive reviews this season for his glove work as a first baseman.

Ali Sanchez, C (No. 17) – With his excellent catch-and-throw skills and highly accurate above-average arm, Sanchez, 22, has long been revered by scouts for his ability to stymie the running game. He threw out 44.3 percent of attempted basestealers this past season between Double- and Triple-A and owns a career rate of 46.4 percent. He also has made steady as a hitter in the past two years, showing improved feel to hit and plate discipline in the upper Minors.

Mets pitchers in the AFL

Ryley Gilliam, RHP (No. 16) – The Mets’ 2018 fifth-round pick took off in his first full season, ascending from Class A Advanced St. Lucie up to Triple-A Syracuse within the season’s first four months before landing on the injured list. Behind a 95-96 mph fastball and high-spin-rate curveball in the low 80s, the 23-year-old Clemson product racked up 56 strikeouts in 38 2/3 innings, albeit while compiling a 6.05 ERA.

Jordan Humphreys, RHP (No. 22) – Humphreys, 23, had his entire 2018 campaign wiped out by Tommy John surgery and logged just two innings this past season as he continued to experience complications from the injury and required a second minor surgery. Fully healthy in the Fall League, the former 18th-round pick (2015) has regained his pre-injury stuff -- operating at 93-94 mph with his fastball and showing feel for both his mid- to upper-80s breaking ball and 84-85 mph changeup -- while proving capable of working multiple frames.

Blake Taylor, LHP – A former second-round pick of the Pirates (2013) whom the Mets acquired in June 2014, Taylor posted a 2.16 ERA with 10 saves and 74 strikeouts in 66 2/3 innings (40 games) this past season while climbing from St. Lucie to Syracuse. The 24-year-old southpaw can run his fastball up to 96 mph and features long arm action on the backside that gives him some natural deception and aids his effectiveness against hitters on both sides of the plate.