Highlight the Future: Amed Rosario
The Mets have a special prospect in Amed Rosario, a talented defensive shortstop who is already impressing in Spring Training.
The New York Mets came close to a World Series victory in 2015, but failed to make it past the San Francisco Giants in the Wild Card game last year. Despite the success in recent years, the Mets have yet to break their 30 year World Series drought.
While they have excellent starting pitcher depth in Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, and Matt Harvey, offense has been hard to come by the last few years. As a team in 2016, they mustered only 97 wRC+, good for 16th in all of baseball. As of yet, their starting pitching alone hasn’t been able to take them all the way, but things could change soon enough.
The first pitch shortstop Amed Rosario saw in batting practice in Spring Training this year was hit off the batter’s eye in center for a home run. Talk about making an impression for your manager. As it turns out, Rosario wasn’t just impressing his manager, as Mets GM Sandy Alderson and fans turned out to watch the Mets #1 ranked prospect and 11th overall prospect in baseball.
While Rosario is mainly seen as a defensive prospect at shortstop, he has improved dramatically offensively in the past few years and is turning into a potential difference-maker for a Mets team badly needing improvement at the plate.
What’s Got Us So Excited?
The 21-year-old Dominican prospect signed with the Mets in 2012 for $1.75M and has had tremendous success at each level despite being at least three years younger than the average player at his level. While he has played almost three full seasons in the minors, he has yet to advance past Double-A, where he finished the last season.
While Rosario split time in Double- and Single-A last year, he had success both offensively and defensively at both levels. With the Mets High-A ball affiliate, he slashed .309/.359/.442 in 66 games while driving in 40 runs. Known for his speed, he also stole 13 bases, though he was caught 6 times. He ended his time in High-A ball with a wRC+ of 132.
When he was promoted to Double-A, Rosario continued to have success and even improved on offense. In 54 games, he slashed .341/.392/.481 and had a wRC+ of 142. He also had 31 RBI and scored 38 times. While Rosario doesn’t hit for power (he has only had five home runs over the past four years in the minors) he sprays the ball to all fields and is a doubles and triples machine. Last year, he had 13 triples combined between High- and Double-A.
Expectations
While known for his defense, Rosario loves to hit. Despite some early offensive setbacks (he had never hit above .257 until last year), he has improved at the plate and become a serious offensive prospect. He doesn’t hit for much power but gets on base at good rates and can kick start a rally with his speed. He also plays an important (and difficult) defensive position in the infield at shortstop and does so extremely well.
MLB.com lists Rosario as the 11th overall prospect in baseball, though with the logjam of prospects at shortstop he is only fourth at his position. FanGraphs has him projected at 55/50 speed, 50/55 field, and 60/60 throw, meaning he has great speed, good defense, and an excellent arm, but he rates poorly at the plate as he only has 20/50 hit and 20/50 game power. He has also added about 10 pounds of muscle since last year, meaning he could hit for more power in 2017. As the Mets #1 prospect, the pressure is on the young shortstop to deliver, but given his age he still has plenty of time to transform into the type of player most people see him as.
How Long Will He Be Highlighted On My Scorecard?
While there is currently no space for Rosario at shortstop in the big leagues as that position is occupied by everyday shortstop Asdrúbal Cabrera. Cabrera’s contract expires at the end of this year, though he still has a club option for 2019. As such, Rosario likely won’t take over everyday duties until 2018 at the earliest.
This isn’t the worst thing in the world. Despite his three years in the minors, Rosario has yet to make it past Double-A and is probably not ready for the jump to the majors yet. A year in Triple-A could serve him well as he adds power and continues to hone his offensive skills.
A September call-up is not out of the question for the Dominican shortstop if he has a good season in Triple-A, but with his age there is no rush to bring him up to the big leagues. Spring Training has already been good for Rosario, as he has had a chance to impress not just Terry Collins but the rest of Mets fandom.
Estimated date sent back down to the minors: March 10
