This story was excerpted from Anthony DiComo's Mets Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
Several times this season, typically unprompted, Mets manager Buck Showalter has brought up the fact that the Mets have five picks within the first 90 selections of the 2022 Draft. It is a potentially franchise-changing haul, the type of event that could jumpstart the Mets’ quest to develop one of baseball’s best farm systems.
They’re well aware.
“This is the fun part of the job,” said Tommy Tanous, the vice president of amateur scouting who has overseen all Mets Drafts since 2012. “When you can pick more, it’s more fun. It’s more presents under the Christmas tree.”
For a scouting director, the fact that the Mets have so many selections is a once-in-a-career type of circumstance. It’s a comet. In addition to their regular first-round pick at No. 14 overall, the Mets received the 11th overall pick as compensation for not signing their top choice last year, Kumar Rocker. They then have their regular second-round pick at No. 52, followed by the 75th overall pick, which they received as compensation for Noah Syndergaard rejecting a qualifying offer and subsequently signing with the Angels. Finally, the Mets have their regular third-round pick at No. 90.
“We’re all excited,” Tanous said. “But it’s important to remember we have to stick to the process that’s been successful for us, and not change the process just because we have more picks. I think that’s a mistake that teams can make.”
In recent years, New York’s process has revolved around hoarding slot money to extend for players who dropped due to injury concerns or signability issues -- third-rounder Matt Allan in 2019, for example, second-rounder J.T. Ginn in 2020, and Rocker last July. And while the Mets’ decision not to sign Rocker due to medical issues made for a disappointing 2021 Draft, team officials began moving on almost immediately, understanding the value of the compensation they received.
“Look, things are always going to happen in the Draft,” Tanous said. “You try to learn from that. … There’s always the next game to go to and the next job to do.”
Here’s a glance at what the 2022 Draft has in store for the Mets:
First pick and bonus slot: No. 11 overall, $4,778,200
Additional first-day picks: No. 14, No. 52, No. 75
Total bonus pool: $13,955,700
Last three first picks: Rocker (2021, did not sign); Pete Crow-Armstrong (2020), Brett Baty (2019)
Best pick of the last 10 years, per MLB Pipeline: Pete Alonso (2016, second round)