Mets' Williams, Gilbert strengthen bond in the desert

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – No tricks here, just a sweet treat for Mets fans.

The organization's top-ranked position players, Jett Williams and Drew Gilbert, hammered solo home runs during Arizona Fall League action Thursday afternoon, leading the Scorpions to a 10-1 victory over the Desert Dogs at Scottsdale Stadium.

While the duo have gotten to bond together over the past month in the desert, they’ve actually known each other much longer.

When Williams was tearing up the prep scene in northwest Texas, he was a hot commodity for powerhouse college programs. Gilbert was emerging in his own right as a member of the highly regarded Tennessee Volunteers. That is where their story begins to intertwine.

“I went on my official visit and he was my host at Tennessee,” a laughing Williams said of Gilbert. “I mean, he still gives me crap for it to this day. I tell everybody it was a great visit, but he's like, ‘It wasn't good enough.’”

“It's kind of awkward, you know, he's on record saying he would have gone to Tennessee if he could go back,” Gilbert added, also with a chuckle. “Obviously, it didn't matter because he went in the first round out of high school, but I'm just gonna throw that out there. He doesn't deny it. I'm just saying, it's probably true.”

Williams was selected with the 14th overall pick of the 2022 Draft by the Mets straight out of high school. Gilbert went just 14 selections later, but to the Astros. They seemed destined to eventually be big league competitors, not teammates. But when New York moved Justin Verlander to Houston at the Trade Deadline in 2023, Gilbert was the headlining piece in the return package.

But even then, the two appeared on staggered trajectories. Gilbert demolished SEC pitching his junior year en route to a 1.128 OPS and hummed through both the Astros and Mets systems, opening 2024 at Triple-A. While Williams similarly opened the year on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list, he had only amassed 22 at-bats at the Double-A level.

Then the injury bug struck.

Gilbert, the Mets’ third-ranked prospect, went down with a high-grade right hamstring strain in early April. Williams, the club’s No. 2 prospect, was shut down after April 21 due to right wrist soreness, which eventually required surgery. That meant heading to the club’s complex in Port St. Lucie, Fla., where they could rehab alongside one another.

“I mean, we got to spend a pretty good amount of time around each other [this year],” Gilbert said. “Just getting to know each other better. It's nice to have somebody that you kind of push yourself with. It's just good to have someone with the same mentality as you.”

In addition to making up for lost at-bats from the regular season, the Fall League is doubling as a crash course on getting Williams, primarily a shortstop, more reps in center field. (NL MVP candidate Francisco Lindor has the shortstop position on lock for the foreseeable future.) That means on days like Thursday, Williams jogs out to his spot on the grass right next to Gilbert.

“I think it's pretty cool just to have somebody out there that is very similar to you,” Williams said. “I feel like we play the game a little bit differently. He's more crazy, I'm more calm. So I think it's kind of perfect, like leveling each other out. But I think it would be awesome just to be able to play with him at Citi Field one day, hopefully next year.”

For the final six games of Triple-A Syracuse’s season, the lineup card featured both Gilbert and Williams. The tandem now sits on a parallel trajectory toward the Majors, ready to lead the next wave after watching former teammates Mark Vientos and Luisangel Acuña contribute to an NLCS run.

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“Even though we're in the Minor Leagues, you want to be a part of a winning organization,” Gilbert said. “I think it's pretty obvious this year was a pretty big step towards that. Obviously we would like to contribute at some point, but it was really cool [to watch].

“Being in big league camp with a lot of those guys, it was cool to see the things they were able to accomplish this year, especially the fan base rallying around them and seeing a packed-out Citi Field in the playoffs -- it was awesome.”