NEW YORK -- Those interested in the future of the Mets would have done well to take a peek this summer at Class A Columbia, where Ronny Mauricio, Mark Vientos and Shervyen Newton, the Mets’ first-, sixth- and eighth-ranked prospects respectively, played alongside each other in the same infield. The eldest among them, Newton, is 20 years old.

The most successful? That was Vientos, 19, who hit .255 with 12 home runs and a .711 OPS in his first year of full-season ball. It was enough to earn Vientos the Mets’ Sterling Minor League Hitter of the Year Award, and a trip to Citi Field for the awards presentation on Monday.

“It’s exciting playing with those guys,” Vientos said. “It’s a talented group. I asked a lot of questions. We helped out each other.”

Vientos, who is from the Fort Lauderdale area, hosted Mauricio at his home two Spring Trainings ago, when the latter was a freshly signed teenager from the Dominican Republic. The two played alongside each other briefly late last summer at rookie level Class A Kingsport, where Newton was also in residence. They reunited this spring, before all earning full-season assignments at Columbia.

The idea is that one day, all three could play together in New York as well. Although Mauricio is the most heralded prospect of the three, Vientos made the most significant waves this summer, recovering from a pedestrian start to hit .276/.323/.467 with seven home runs over his final 52 games. The youngest player on Day 1 of the Draft two years ago, Vientos was also one of the youngest players in the South Atlantic League this summer.

“I’d just say it’s the confidence factor, adjusting to the league, my first full season, a lot of baseball games,” Vientos said. “I got better. I just got back into the mindset of doing what I was doing in Spring Training, and it helped me out a lot.”

The Mets reformatted their Sterling Awards this year, rebranding them to honor the organization’s top hitter (Vientos), pitcher (Kevin Smith), defender (Andres Gimenez) and baserunner (Sam Haggerty). Smith was also at Citi Field on Monday after posting a 3.15 ERA with 130 strikeouts in 117 innings over two levels this season, topping out at Double-A Binghamton.

“It gives me all the confidence in the world,” Smith said. “I’m going to try to take off next year and do the same thing. Who knows what next year holds, but I think it will be a fun year.”

On the mend

• Second baseman Robinson Canó, who departed Sunday’s game after a pitch struck his left foot, was “feeling good” Monday afternoon, according to Mickey Callaway. The manager indicated that if the Mets were not facing a left-handed starting pitcher, Canó could have been in the starting lineup. He could return on Tuesday.

• First baseman Dominic Smith, who has not played since July 26 due to a stress fracture in his left foot, took live batting practice Monday against another rehabbing player, pitcher Robert Gsellman. Smith is scheduled to undergo a follow-up CT scan on Wednesday; if that comes back negative, the Mets could activate him from the injured list at that time.

• Gsellman, who has missed the last six weeks due to a torn right lat, looked “really, really sharp” in his live bullpen session, according to Callaway. The manager said he does not know if Gsellman is a candidate to come off the IL this week, though Gsellman has said consistently that his intention is to pitch again this season.