Mets Baseball America Prospects Circa 2008 

This installment will contain prospects #11-20. (#1-10 here)

11. Joe Smith, RHP
Age at time of Publication: 23
Where is he now? MLB Cleveland Indians
Career Stats: Minors: 2-4, 2.09 ERA, 1.118 WHIP, 6.3 H/3.8 BB/9.4 K per 9 in 73.1 IP
                         Majors: 13-8, 3.23 ERA, 1.359 WHIP, 8.0 H/4.3 BB/7.9 K per 9 in 209 IP
                         College totals here
How acquired: 2006 3rd round (94th overall) out of Wright State

"Smith succeeded in his first big league season with a sidearm delivery that pumped fastballs up to 94 mph in the lower half of the zone, usually sitting 89-91 with sink... got 3.8 groundouts for every flyout... hard low 80s slider made things difficult for right handers... nibbled more and more as season went on and lefties feasted on him (.858 OPS). Sent down to AAA after allowing 19 of 27 inherited runners to score in July. Smith is what he is: a big-leaguer but probably nothing more than a 6th or 7th inning matchup reliever."

12. Scott Moviel, RHP
Age at time of publication: 19
Where is he now? High-A St. Lucie
Career Stats: Minors: 21-27, 4.5 ERA, 1.461 WHIP, 9.9 H/3.2 BB/6.5 K per 9 in 424.1 IP
How acquired: 2007 2nd round (77th overall) from St. Edward's High School (Lakewood, OH)

"Mets drafted him in the second round in June, wooing him from an NC State commitment for $414,000... flexible and repeats his delivery well... best pitch is his fastball which sits 90-92, and touches 94... should have average command down the line... has feel for a nascent changeup, which he threw sparingly as an amateur... biggest weakness is his breaking ball, which is slow and slurvy... New York believes he'll have a solid hard slider with work and experience... Moviel has a high ceiling and just needs innings." 

13. Stephen Clyne, RHP
Age at time of publication: 23
Where is he now? Out of baseball, released by Mets in July 2010
Career Stats: Minors: 9-8, 3.94 ERA, 1.521 WHIP, 8.7 H/5 BB/7.3 K per 9 in 164.1 IP
                          College stats here
How acquired: 2007 3rd round (123rd overall) from Clemson

"As a redshirt senior he had little bargaining power and signed from $100,000, by far the lowest bonus of the first 3 rounds of the 2007 draft... Clyne isn't far removed from the relievers New York drafted ahead of him, Eddie Kunz and Brant Rustich, as he throws hard, reaching up to 94 mph with his sinker... also has a strikeout pitch in a plus, two-plane breaking slider that has power and depth in the low-80s... Mets see Clyne as a set-up man who who should move quickly and believe he can reach that ceiling after seeing improvement upon signing... If he comes out throwing strikes in 2008, Clyne could speed through the system."

14. Nick Carr, RHP 
Age at time of publication: 20
Where is he now? High-A St. Lucie
Career Stats: Minors: 18-22, 4.34 ERA, 1.454 WHIP, 8.6 H/4.5 BB/8.7 K per 9 in 335.2 IP
How Acquired? 2005 41st round (1227th overall) from Twin Falls HS (Twin Falls, ID)

"Mets drafted Carr in 2005 when he was the top prep arm in Idaho, and followed him for a year at JC of Southern Idaho before signing him...Holds fastball velocity well at 91-94 and touches 96... slider can be a plus pitch with tilt and power, reaching 84-88... Still has a below-average changeup, and to be a starter, he'll need to change speeds more effectively.... Mets consider him one of their better arms and hope he can emulate Robert Parnell in honing his change while maintaining a power repertoire... will pitch at  Class A in 2008."

15. (as written in the book) Danny Murphy, 3B
Age at time of publication: 22
Where is he now? Irish Hammer for MLB New York Mets
Career Stats: Majors: .282/.335/.432, 19 HR 113 RBI 106 OPS+, 2.4 WAR in 1002 PA
                         Minors: .295/.356/.452 28 HR 171 RBI in 1126 PA
                         College here
How acquired: 2006 13th Round (394th overall) from Jacksonville University

"Played in the same infield as Anthony Bernazard, whose father Tony is the Mets' vice president of player development wanted to kick the shit out of at least a third of the guys on this list in 2009 at Binghamton... Bat has always been his calling card - hit .398 as a college junior - and allowed him to rank second in the FSL in hits in his first full season...Has a slow, steady contact-oriented approach and a short balanced swing...Defense at third is still a work in progress, made 35 errors in 135 games at St. Lucie, the main culprit being below-average footwork.... Below average runner, likely to move to the OF or 1B ... The problem is Murphy's gap power doesn't profile well at a less challenging position, though optimistic scouts believe he can hit 20 HR annually... Murphy is ticketed for AA."

16. Greg Veloz, 3B
Age at time of publication: 19
Where is he now?  Out of baseball, last played with  High A Potomac (Washington) in 2009
Career stats: Minors: .244/.315/.350, 20 HR 148 RBI, 157 BB/402 K in 1866 PA
How acquired: FA from Dominican Republic, 2005

"Mets had high expectations for Veloz entering 2007 as he was the team's MVP for the DSL Mets the summer prior... Moved with double-play partner Juan Lagares to low A to start season, but neither was ready for challenge... Veloz has power from both sides of the plate that excites scouts, though he's quite raw... Ball jumps off his bat and he could hit 25 homers annually if he learns to temper his aggressive approach and swing at strikes...Average arm strength, he's currently a 2B with solid range, and he projects to be a plus fielder if he can improve his footwork"

17. Wilmer Flores, 3B/SS
Age at time of publication: 16
Where is he now? High-A St. Lucie
Career Stats: Minors: .281/.323/.395, 27 HR 209 RBI, 85 BB/228 K in 1744 PA
How acquired: FA from Venezuela, 2007

"Flores currently lacks strength but he has a projectable frame and should grow into his body and become a force with the bat... Has an advanced approach for a young player, not to mention a 16 year old Latin American and has drawn some internal comparisons to Miguel Cabrera for his present pull power and ability to use all fields... Biggest question scouts have on Flores is his future defensive home, and they're not as sold on his bat as the Mets are... Big rangy shortstop who is likely to outgrow the position... Assignment will largely depend on his spring training performance." 

18. Ruben Tejada, SS/2B
Age at time of publication: 18
Where is he now? MLB NY Mets
Career Stats: Minors: .272/.343/.358, 14 HR 158 RBI, 145 BB/227 in 1817 PA
                         Majors: .235/.318/.287, 1 HR 31 RBI, 35 BB/63 K in 402 PA
How acquired: FA from Panama, 2006

"Tejada's best present tools are on the defensive side, as he has above average arm strenth and range that allowi him to make all the plays at shortstop... Above-average runner with and advanced approach at the plate, walking more times than he struck out... Also has some strength and some gap power, and while he doesn't project to hit for more than fringe-average power, he's not a slap hitter either."

19. Mike Carp, 1B
Age at time of publication: 21
Where is he now? As of 7 hours ago, AAA Tacoma 
Career stats: Minors: .277/.368/.469, 131 HR 495 RBI, 347 BB/653 K in 3354 PA
                        Majors: .246/.351/.341, 1 HR 5 RBI, 18 BB/32 K in 148 PA
How acquired: 2004 9th Round (254th overall) from Lakewood HS (CA)

"Carp has some of the best hitting ability in the organization thanks to his willingness to use the entire field, good hand-eye coordination and usually disciplined approach... New York thought he had turned a corner against lefthanded pitching in the spring, but he looks like a platoon player after posting a .410 OPS in 110 ABs at Binghamton against lefties... Defense remains below average as he ranked 3rd in the Eastern League in errors with 10 in just 97 games... He's just 21 so the Mets will give him a mulligan for 2007 and probably promote him to AAA this year." 

20. Nick Evans, 1B
Age at time of publication: 22
Where is he now? As of 8 hours ago, the Mets promoted Nick Evans to the majors from AAA. However, there was nothing to be found in his seat on the plane.
Career Stats: Minors: .278/.344/.479, 106 HR 404 RBI, 266 BB/538 K in 3012 PA
                         Majors: .243/.298/.387, 4 HR 21 RBI, 17 BB/60 K -0.1 WAR in 242 PA
How acquired: 2004 5th Round (134th overall) from St. Mary's High School (Phoenix)

"Evans has become exactly what scouts said he would be out of high school: a one-dimensional slugger whose value is tied complete to his bat...One scout with an NL club said he turned in Evans as a psoepct despite considering him below average as a hitter, runner, filerer, and thrower; the reason that fifth tool... He has a swing that can get long, but hes eought bat speed to catch up to good fastballs when he's looking for them.... He's willing to draw walks and absolutely mashed left-handers (1.036 OPS)... He should replace Carp as Binghamton first baseman this season."