RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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See the full story · 1 sourcesNEW YORK — This is a sobering stretch in a lost season for the New York Mets, whose status as trade-deadline sellers underscores how much went wrong for a team once with World Series aspirations.
But if there is one positive takeaway, it’s that young players including Carson Benge and Christian Scott are showing they belong in the big leagues.
And that bodes well for the future.
Benge went into Saturday afternoon’s 6-2 loss to the Miami Marlins at Citi Field hitting .266 with 11 home runs, a .725 OPS and 17 stolen bases.
After a slow start to his rookie year — he batted .179 over his first 30 games — Benge hit .294 with a .795 OPS over the next 76 games.
For three months, Benge, 23, has flashed the offensive potential that made him a 2024 first-round pick and one of the Mets’ top prospects.
More recently, Benge has been opening eyes with his defense in right field, too.
He recorded two outfield assists in Friday’s 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field, first throwing out Shohei Ohtani as the four-time MVP tried to leg out a triple, and then nailing Freddie Freeman at home plate — with a 100 mph throw.
Benge also made a stellar diving catch in Wednesday’s 1-0 loss to the Atlanta Braves to rob Ronald Acuna Jr. of a hit.
“I thought he really improved last year in the minor leagues,” said interim manager Andy Green, who led the Mets’ farm system before temporarily moving into the dugout.
“It became a passion point for him, understanding that if you really want to bring value to a major-league club and you want to be here for a long time, your defense can keep you out there when your offense might scuffle for a little bit. He’s definitely one of those guys that can change the game with his arm and his glove.”
Benge — a former two-way player who pitched in the same Oklahoma State rotation as Mets ace Nolan McLean — entered Friday with four outfield assists, tied for the ninth-most in the National League.
“It’s one of my favorite things to do on a field, throw someone out — especially at home. That makes it even better,” Benge said recently.
“My arm was always playing, but getting that transfer time down … was a big part of getting me better out there.”
And then there’s Scott, who is 3-3 with a 2.99 ERA in 15 starts after dueling with Atlanta Braves ace Chris Sale in Wednesday’s 1-0 defeat.
Scott, 27, has 85 strikeouts in 69.1 innings this season, his first since undergoing 2024 Tommy John surgery that also cost him all of last year.
The right-hander began this season at Triple-A Syracuse but has since secured his place in the Mets’ rotation, now and in the future.
“He is the same strike-thrower he always was, which was a great place to start,” Green said.
“He’s got a live fastball. He’s added some depth, spin, occasionally throwing a curveball. That’s relatively new for him, and that’s a nice wrinkle for him to have. I just think he knows he belongs on a big-league mound and knows he can go toe-to-toe with the best in the league.”
Benge and Scott are part of a young Mets nucleus also headlined by the 25-year-old McLean (7-7, 3.29) and 21-year-old rookie outfielder A.J. Ewing (seven homers, .743 OPS, 14 steals through 71 MLB games).
There’s also rookie left-hander Zac Thornton, 24, who has impressed with his command and versatile pitch mix.
Thornton doesn’t throw hard, but he is 2-2 with a 2.88 ERA after allowing four runs (three earned) in 4 2/3 innings in Saturday’s loss.
It’s been an uneven year for the Mets’ farm system, as other top prospects — including Triple-A pitchers Jonah Tong (3-5, 5.24 ERA) and Jack Wenninger (4-7, 4.07 ERA) — have endured their struggles.
But the performances of Benge, Scott, Ewing and others offer optimism for the future.
“We’ve graduated some really high-upside, young talent that’s producing at the major-league level right now, which is really exciting for us and forms a good part of that core,” Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said recently.
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