Mets' Williams hyped to be in AFL after injury-plagued season

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Eleven games into the 2024 season, Jett Williams had to sit.

A right wrist issue that bothered him at the end of Spring Training was carrying into his start to the year at Double-A Binghamton, and a 7-for-39 (.180) start confirmed that it was holding him back. He and the Mets tried two cortisone shots, and when they didn’t work out as hoped, Williams underwent wrist surgery on June 6. He didn’t return to action on a rehab assignment with Single-A St. Lucie until Aug. 21 – exactly four months after his last Minor League game.

That lengthy layoff put three letters onto Williams’ radar: AFL.

“Coming here, I’m just really excited to actually play this year,” the Mets’ No. 2 prospect said from Arizona Fall League Media Day.

It wasn’t a straight path from St. Lucie to Scottsdale for the 20-year-old shortstop/center fielder. He got in 11 more games with Binghamton, and after the Rumble Ponies’ season concluded on Sept. 15, he joined Triple-A Syracuse for the first time and ended the year on a bit of a hot streak, going 8-for-22 (.364) with four doubles and eight walks in six games.

That International League performance was more like the version of Williams the baseball industry has seen since the Mets took Williams 14th overall in the 2022 Draft. The 5-foot-6 right-handed hitter was an on-base machine in his first full season, finishing with a .425 OBP and 104 walks (second-most in the Minors) in 121 games across Single-A, High-A and Double-A. His 45 steals were also most among Mets’ Minor Leaguers. That combination of discipline, approach and speed made Williams a necessity in St. Lucie, Brooklyn and Binghamton lineups, and going from an everyday presence to an injured-list stay was tough to swallow for the Texas native.

“I couldn’t really touch anything with my right side,” Williams said. “I did a bunch of defense, a little one-hand stuff. But for the most part, just chilled a little bit. After I had surgery, I couldn’t do anything for a little while. I watched a lot of baseball – how they played, the tendencies of some pitchers.”

Early indications are that the downtime glovework paid off as he’s shown quick hands and good defensive actions at shortstop in initial AFL looks. His plus speed is also considered an asset in center field, where there’s more room to roam, and at the AFL’s outset, Jett estimated that New York would try to get him 50-50 playing time between the dirt and the grass. That hasn’t quite worked out so far. Four of his first five defensive starts have come at short, though that could even out as the Fall League sample expands.

It doesn’t matter to Williams. So long as there’s no more sitting.

“At the end of the day, I don’t really care where I play,” he said. “As long as I’m out there and helping the team win.”

Mets hitters in the Fall League

Drew Gilbert, OF (No. 3/MLB No. 74): Gilbert suffered a right hamstring strain only seven games into his season at Triple-A Syracuse and missed much of the first half. He showed spurts of impressive power, but he managed only a .214/.315/.401 line in 49 games following his return, proving Gilbert isn’t only in the Fall League to make up for lost time but to end 2024 on a brighter note. He can still show promising pull side pop, above-average speed and good arm strength, but will need a strong AFL and more Triple-A consistency before he’s pushing for Queens in 2025.

Jacob Reimer, 3B/1B (No. 20): Reimer’s own hamstring injury meant he didn’t make his season debut until July 9, and even then, he only played 25 games the rest of the way, most of which came at High-A Brooklyn. The 20-year-old right-handed slugger has good bat speed and previously showed great in-zone contact rates and overall discipline but needs at-bats to get his power to play better in games. While he’s played in the corner infield spots in the Minors, he got an early AFL start in left field, too.

Mets pitchers in the Fall League

Saul Garcia, RHP: Known partly as Wilmer Flores' cousin (both Wilmer Floreses, the Giants infielder and the Tigers pitching prospect), Garcia posted a 5.43 ERA with 79 strikeouts and 41 walks in 66 ⅓ innings at Single-A St. Lucie before closing out his age-21 season with a scoreless five-inning cameo with High-A Brooklyn. The 6-foot righty touched 96.4 mph in the Florida State League but sat closer to 92-94 while also showing a low-80s slider, mid-80s changeup and upper-80s cutter.

Noah Hall, RHP: Taken in the seventh round in the 2023 Draft out of South Carolina, Hall managed only 13 innings in what was meant to be his first full season, making him a prime AFL candidate. So far in the Fall League, he’s shown a pair of fastballs in the 90-93 mph range, an upper-80s cutter and a low-80s slider. But the star of the show is his 80-83 mph changeup that can show 17-20 inches of armside run.

Jonathan Pintaro, RHP: The Mets signed Pintaro out of the independent Pioneer League on June 3, and the 26-year-old right-hander proceeded to climb from High-A to Triple-A in the New York system, posting a 2.68 ERA with 75 strikeouts in 74 innings. He throws two types of fastballs around 93-95 mph and will work in an 89-91 mph cutter, a 82-85 mph slider and a mid-80s changeup.

Jawilme Ramirez, RHP: After flipping between starting and relieving roles for much of his career, Ramirez essentially became a full-time reliever in 2024 and finished with a 3.58 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 61 strikeouts in 73 innings primarily at Single-A and High-A. The 22-year-old righty only throws 91-94 mph but can get whiffs on the heater because of some impressive ride generating from his long arm action. He also shows a low-80s slider, a mid-80s changeup and an occasional upper-70s curveball.

Dylan Ross, RHP: After making only two starts that season for Georgia, Ross underwent Tommy John surgery in the spring of 2022. The Mets still selected him in the 13th round that summer, and Ross finally made his pro debut on Sept. 7, 2024, striking out all three batters he faced for Single-A St. Lucie. His early work in the AFL has been rougher (6 ER in 1 ⅔ innings over his first two appearances), but getting back on the mound is a positive step for the former Bulldog. Ross was 94-96 mph with his fastball in his lone Florida State League appearance and mixed in an 88 mph cutter and some 84-86 mph curveballs.