These Mets prospects are Statcast standouts this season

Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing are the princes of Queens these days, and if they keep up their current levels of play, they could be upgraded to kings by the end of their rookie seasons.

Before they debuted in the Majors, we at MLB Pipeline dove into their Minor League Statcast data to give fans a glimpse into why they could be impact players for the Mets, both in the short and long terms. Back in November, we broke down why Benge was better than how his Triple-A numbers looked on their surface, and last month, we showed how Ewing’s elite speed could play in the bigs immediately.

Both players’ moves to the Majors haven’t left the Mets’ farm system bereft of Statcast standouts, however. Using the public data available at Single-A St. Lucie and Triple-A Syracuse, here are more Mets prospects lighting up analytical charts in 2026.

Randy Guzman, 1B/OF (No. 23): It feels impossible to talk about Mets Minor League Statcast standouts and not bring up the 21-year-old right-handed slugger. Sure, his nine homers, .469 slugging percentage and .826 OPS are solid marks for the Single-A Florida State League, but look under the hood. Guzman owns the hardest-hit ball in the FSL this season with a 117.6 mph homer on May 16, and he’s the only hitter in the circuit with multiple exit velocities above 115 mph. He has three. In 2026, Guzman’s 91.1 mph average exit velocity is tied for 11th best in the FSL (with a minimum of 50 batted balls). Guzman’s hit tool still comes with plenty of questions, like his struggles against premium velocity, but his raw power is too good to ignore.

Ryan Clifford, 1B/OF (No. 3): Clifford’s power potential has never been in doubt since he came over from the Astros in the 2023 trade involving Justin Verlander, and consider how he compares here to a certain player in terms of power data at Triple-A in 2026:

Clifford: 93.3 mph average exit velocity, 113.1 mph max EV, 53% hard-hit rate, 14.4% barrels-per-batted-ball rate
Player B: 93.7 mph average exit velocity, 113.4 mph max EV, 51.6% hard-hit rate, 14.5% barrels-per-batted-ball rate

If you guessed that Player B was Reds outfielder and reigning National League Player of the Month JJ Bleday from his 24-game spin with Triple-A Louisville to start 2026, then collect your prize. There are plenty of other differences in the data; for starters, Bleday had a more disciplined approach as a 28-year-old veteran than Clifford has shown in his age-22 season at the Minors’ top level, and Clifford’s high whiff rate has kept him from breaking through as an above-average bat with Syracuse so far.

But the data is illustrative of what’s in the tank for the left-handed slugger: Plenty of raw power that leads to lots of loud contact when he does get the bat on the ball with some level of consistency.

Jack Wenninger, RHP (No. 5): The calls to promote Wenninger were loud during his run of three straight scoreless starts from April 30 to May 12, though they’ve quieted a bit since. That said, Wenninger’s best pitch in his splitter has retained that status in 2026. Averaging 84.2 mph with Syracuse, the pitch has generated a 40.4% whiff rate through 11 outings. It’s thrown from a high release point around 6.57 feet -- not quite Trey Yesavage heights of 7.19 feet but in the same general atmosphere -- and has roughly similar armside run as his 92-94 mph four-seamer but drops 22 more inches with little spin (1,356 rpm on average), causing it to dip below bats and elicit empty swings.

Whenever Wenninger does make that MLB debut at some point in 2026, expect him to go to that bread and butter a good amount to batters on both sides.

Nate Lavender, LHP: It’s been a busy past few years for Lavender despite limited playing time. He underwent internal brace surgery on his left elbow in May 2024, moved to the Rays as a Rule 5 Draft pick that December, had another elbow procedure to remove a bone spur in August and was returned to the Mets last November, having never thrown a pitch in the Tampa Bay system. He made nine rehab appearances with St. Lucie and High-A Brooklyn before being activated off Syracuse’s IL on May 9, and he’s posted a 3.27 ERA with 19 strikeouts and only three walks in 11 innings since.

A big reason for that is the quality of his four-seam fastball. Between the two Statcast leagues, Lavender has thrown 152 four-seamers and generated whiffs on 44.3% of the swings against them. No other Mets Minor Leaguer has a four-seam whiff rate above 40% (min. 100 thrown) in front of Statcast this season. Lavender’s heat sits just 91-93 but comes with good ride (17-18 inches), armside movement (5.1 inches on average) and massive extension (7.1 feet) that allows him to get right on top of batters. It’s no shock that 61.5% of Lavender’s pitches measured by Statcast have been four-seamers.

Joel Lara, RHP: If you’re looking for more traditional heat in your fastballs, check out 19-year-old righty Lara in his second season with St. Lucie.

There have been 18 pitches thrown at 99 mph or above by teenagers in the FSL this season. Fourteen of those belong to No. 3 overall prospect Seth Hernandez of the Pirates. The other four come from Lara, who maxed out with a 99.4 mph heater on April 30. The 6-foot-2 hurler has gotten close to triple digits with both his four-seamer and sinker variations. He averaged 95.1 mph on his four-seamer in 2025 and now is averaging 96.7 this year. Lara, who has actually thrown his slider the most in ‘26, still struggles with control (18 walks, 12 hit batters in 28 innings) but the raw heat commands attention for someone of his age and experience level.