2015 Mets Minor League Review: St. Lucie Mets, Second Half

Season Record: 34-33/33-35

Much like the St. Lucie Mets in the first half, the St. Lucie Mets in the second half were not as impressive as the performances of various players on the team. After ending the first half with a 34-33 record, ten games behind the Charlotte Stone Crabs for first place, St. Lucie ended the second half with a 33-35 record, ten games behind the Palm Beach Cardinals for first place.

Following Michael Conforto's promotion to Binghamton, other players stepped up big time for St. Lucie. After heating up at the end of the first half, first baseman Dom Smith had an even better second half, hitting .352/.397/.472 in June, .305/.348/.410 in July, and .323/.389/.427 in August. The underrated Jeff McNeil slowed down after a torrid start, hitting.295/.354/.386 in June and .269/.325/.337 in July, but recovered and ended his season on the right foot, hitting .330/.398/.407 in August. Amed Rosario lost a lot of playing time due to injury, and struggled when he did return to the field, but the long-term viability of the 19-year-old's glove at shortstop became more certain.

MVP

Dominic Smith

Smith struggled at the beginning of the season, hitting a paltry .220/.256/.244 in April and a more tolerable .276/.321/.429 in May, but really picked things up starting in June. The Mets' top draft pick in 2013 hit .352/.397/.472 in June, .305/.348/.410 in July, and .323/.389/.427 in August. His 139 hits were tied for fourth most in the league, while his 33 doubles were enough to lead the circuit. At the end of the season, Dominic Smith was named the Florida State League MVP.

Runner Up

Jeff McNeil

Underrated in 2014, when he hit a combined .292/.367/.394 with Savannah and St. Lucie, middle infielder Jeff McNeil was similarly underrated in 2015. His .312 batting average led the team, as did his .382 on-base percentage. In addition to being competent with the bat, McNeil showed defensive ability up the middle. In particular, he showed the necessary skills to play shortstop competently, logging 33 games and 276.1 innings at the position.

Cy Young

Logan Taylor

After being limited by injuries in 2013 and 2014, Logan Taylor was able to finally put together a full season; and the results weren't bad. The 23-year-old made 22 starts, second most on the team, and he led the team with 136.2 innings pitched. Taylor was fairly effective on the mound, tied with Miller Diaz for the most strikeouts.

Runner Up

Mickey Jannis

Knuckleball. ‘nuff said.