The Mets restocked their prospect coffers this year with players seemingly closer to being major-league ready, grabbing nine Division 1 college players among their first 10 selections in the 2024 MLB Draft.
Kris Gross, the Mets’ vice president of amateur scouting, said Monday in a Zoom conference call that’s simply “how the cookie crumbled.”
The lone high-school player among the Mets’ first 10 picks was shortstop Trey Snyder, their fifth-round selection (144th overall) from the Kansas City area.
He has verbally committed to play next season at Tennessee, the 2024 College World Series champions.
“Trey has a strong commitment to Tennessee, but we were really impressed with what he can do. … And we’re looking forward to the possibility of getting him in here and possibly signing him,” Gross said. “This kid played multiple sports in high school and we had him do a workout and his athleticism is really off the charts.”
The Mets made two selections Sunday night, grabbing outfielder/pitcher Carson Benge (19th overall) from Oklahoma State and pitcher Jonathan Santucci (46th) out of Duke in the first two rounds.
In rounds three through 10, the Mets also grabbed Mississippi State pitcher Nate Dohm (third round), North Carolina State outfielder Eli Serrano III (fourth), Georgia first baseman Corey Collins (sixth), USC pitcher Will Watson (seventh), Oklahoma pitcher Ryan Lambert (eighth), Houston pitcher Jaxon Jelkin (ninth) and Oklahoma pitcher Brendan Girton (10th).
The final 10 rounds of the draft will take place on Tuesday.
The right-handed Dohm, the 82nd overall pick, posted a 1.23 ERA over 29 ¹/₃ innings as a junior at Mississippi State.
“We’re excited about the whole class,” Gross said. “[Dohm] started out as a Friday guy, explosive fastball from a lower slot and promising off-speed stuff to work with.
“And Serrano started out as a first baseman and moved to center field this year, and took to it quickly, and we think he can turn into a decent power-hitting outfielder.
“So, we’re excited to get those three to start the day, and we rounded it out well with some big arms and some power-hitting bats. Overall, I think we’re very excited about the haul for the day.”
Watson and Lambert were relievers in college, but Mets scouts think Watson’s fastball can play as a starter if he also develops his slider.
Lambert, Gross said, “is a huge power arm and we’re excited to get him in the draft in the eighth round.”