SAD BUT DREW!
Gagnon’s MLB debut at 28 shows harsh reality of Mets’ sparse farm system
Drew Gagnon was living the dream Tuesday night. After eight seasons in the minors, the 28year-old one-time prospect was making his major league debut for the Mets. The thirdround pick for the Brewers in the 2011 draft had been planning a trip to the Grand Canyon this week during the Triple-A All-Star break before the call-up.
It was a great story for a journeyman pitcher who had his parents and fiancée at Citi Field Tuesday with the Mets facing the Phillies.
As nice of a story as it was, it was also a reminder of the uphill battle the Mets are facing to get back into contention next season like they expect. The Phillies started 22-year old prospect Enyel De Los Santos. Considered the No.11 prospect in the Phillies’ system, they acquired him from the Padres when they dealt Freddy Galvis to San Diego.
“The Phillies have a kid in Single-A who is better than this guy,” one scout at the game Tuesday night said of Gagnon. “They have the pitching depth that the Mets just don’t have now.”
An organization built around strong pitching, the Mets are now running low and have fallen far behind their National League East rivals in the Phillies and Braves. Their lack of pitching depth in the farm system was exposed this week and made clear the kind of decisions the Mets are facing at the end of the month with the non-waiver trade deadline looming.
Because of injuries, trades and organizational decisions, the Mets have had to start two of their prospects, Chris Flexen and Corey Oswalt, this week before they were ready and Tuesday night, they had to turn to Gagnon.
Since the beginning of the year, the Mets have traded Matt Harvey and lost Jason Vargas and Noah Syndergaard to extended stints on the disabled list. They chose to take Seth Lugo and Robert Gsellman out of the rotation to try to stabilize a shaky bullpen.
Gagnon was not in their major league plans in March, but there he was Tuesday night.
“He was a prospect a few years ago,” one scout said. “I remember scouting him with the Brewers. The stuff was OK, but nothing spectacular. He’s not the future of the organization, he’s a filler.”
In fact, Gagnon was signed to a minor-league deal this winter with the idea he would help the Triple-A team. He’s been OK with Las Vegas. In 17 starts this season with the Triple-A team, Gagnon was 1-4 with a 4.67 ERA, a 1.26 WHIP, 99 strikeouts and 31 walks across 96 1/3 innings. He has a career 4.78 ERA in the minor leagues.
With the trade deadline at the end of the month, the Mets have to evaluate their farm system and decide if the quick turnaround for next season is really possible with the pieces they have there. From the accounts of scouts who have seen the Mets’ system from low Class-A to Triple-A, their talent is at the lower levels and years away from the big leagues.
Lefty David Peterson, their No.3 prospect, is drawing strong reviews from scouts but is in High Class-A ball right now. Right-hander Justin Dunn, the No.4 prospect, was just promoted to Double-A this season.
With a farm system that was ranked the fourth worst in baseball at the beginning of the season, the Mets have to use this trade deadline to restock.
Only a big trade, like moving a top-line starter such as Jacob deGrom or Noah Syndergaard, would allow the Mets to quickly retool their farm system to be able to compete with the young, athletic and upand-coming teams in their division like the Phillies and Braves.
The Mets, however, have made it clear to teams that they are unlikely to deal deGrom unless they are “blown away.” They are also unlikely to deal Syndergaard, who is expected to come off the disabled list and start on Friday against the Nationals, because it would be at a low-value point after his time being injured this season.
Tuesday night, Gagnon’s journey to finally reaching the big leagues was a nice story, but more importantly for the Mets, it was a clear sign they need to find a way to restock their farm system.