Road to The Show™: Mets’ Sproat

Each week, MiLB.com profiles an elite prospect by chronicling the steps he's taken toward achieving his Major League dream. Here's a look at sixth-ranked Mets prospect Brandon Sproat. For more stories about players on The Road to The Show, click here.

There are few players in the Minor Leagues who experienced a first-half breakout quite like Brandon Sproat.

The 23-year-old right-hander opened the season as the Mets' 13th-ranked prospect. He moved up to No. 6 on the team list and No. 96 on MLB Pipeline’s overall Top 100 when the rankings were updated on July 1.

The 6-foot-3 hurler can reach triple digits with a two-seam fastball that usually sits between 94-98 mph with some arm-side run. His highest-graded secondary pitch is an upper-80s, fading changeup that gets a lot of swing-and-miss and gives all sorts of trouble to left-handed hitters. He also throws a 55-grade, mid-80s slider that gets both horizontal and vertical break and a curveball that’s still a work in progress.

In 14 appearances (13 starts) between High-A Brooklyn and Double-A Binghamton, Sproat has a 1.71 ERA with 85 punchouts in 73 ⅔ innings while holding opposing batters to a .168 average.

The strong first half earned him a spot as the Mets' representative in the All-Star Futures Game. During his lone frame in the prospect showcase, Sproat threw the fastest two pitches, both 99.2 mph fastballs. He faced just three batters and worked around an error with a double play in the third inning of the National League’s 6-1 victory.

"Even though he has the big fastball, he still finds ways to mix other pitches in so it keeps the fastball alive maybe a couple times through the order,” Binghamton pitching coach A.J. Sager told MLB.com in June. "He's got good stuff and he realizes that. He's making hitters deal with it, and so far, it's been successful."

The Pensacola, Florida, native built an impressive resume at Pace High School, which included a state championship appearance in his junior season and a selection to the Florida Athletic Coaches Association All-State Team as a senior in 2019. Sproat went 5-2 with a 1.53 ERA and 53 punchouts over 32 innings in his final prep season.

He had a strong commitment to the University of Florida but still was viewed as a potential early-round talent in the 2019 Draft. He was selected by the Rangers in the seventh round, but he did not sign and instead headed for Gainesville.

Sproat appeared in just four games as a reliever, allowing one run and striking out eight over six total innings, during a pandemic-shortened freshman season. He made up for lost time that summer with Tulsa in the Texas Collegiate League. Over three appearances, two starts, he allowed four earned runs in 10 ⅓ innings (3.48 ERA) while striking out seven.

He worked mostly out of the Gators' bullpen during the 2021 season, producing a 6.65 ERA over 16 appearances, two of which were starts. Despite the rough numbers, he showed promise as a starter.

After one ugly appearance in the Cape Cod League, Sproat moved into the Florida rotation nearly full-time in 2022. He went 9-4 with a 3.41 ERA and 82 strikeouts over 89 ⅔ innings.

Although the numbers again don’t jump off the page, Sproat was terrific down the stretch for the Gators, going 5-0 with a 1.59 ERA while holding opposing hitters to a .218 average in his final six starts.

At this point, Sproat had already caught the eye of the team with which he would eventually sign. The Mets actually selected Sproat in the third round with the No. 90 overall pick in the 2022 Draft, but the two sides could not come to an agreement and the right-hander returned to Florida for what was technically his redshirt junior season.

During his final season in Gainesville, Sproat earned Second Team All-SEC honors while going 8-3 with a 4.66 ERA and 134 strikeouts over 106 1/3 innings.

The Mets kept an eye on Sproat as he made noticeable improvements. New York required consent from Sproat to select him a second time. And they did just that with the No. 56 overall pick in 2023. Sproat had increased his value and signed for a pick value bonus of $1,474,500.

Sproat did not pitch in the Minors after being drafted last year. His organizational debut actually came during the club’s Spring Breakout game against the Nationals in March. Sproat’s appearance resembled his Futures Game performance. He worked one scoreless inning of relief, reaching 99 mph. But this time he struck out a pair.

Sproat reported to Brooklyn and lasted six outings before earning a promotion to Binghamton in May. As a college arm, there was a good chance that he might move quickly through the system. But he’s already outpaced fellow Gators reliever-turned Mets starter Christian Scott so far.