New York Mets 2024 International Review

Top Of The Class

The Mets signed catcher Yovanny Rodriguez for $2.85 million, the No. 5 bonus for any international player this year and the most for a catcher. Rodriguez is a 17-year-old from Venezuela who some scouts thought was in the same tier as some of the premier catchers who have come out of the country in recent classes.

He’s 6 feet, 180 pounds, receives pitches well with soft hands and controls the running game with a plus arm and quick release, with pop times often under 2.0 seconds and under 1.9 seconds on his best bolts. Rodriguez has a strong build with fast bat speed to drive the ball out of the park to his pull side and a chance to hit 20-plus home runs. Scouts who liked Rodriguez the most also thought his offensive game was advanced for his age, especially his strike-zone judgment, with the bat-to-ball skills and approach that should help him get into that power against live pitching. 

Names To Know

Edward Lantigua, OF, Dominican Republic: Lantigua, 17, signed for $950,000. When teams were scouting him as an amateur, he was a skinny righthanded hitter who made a lot of line-drive contact with gap power. By the time Jan. 15 arrived for his signing, he had grown to 6-foot-2, 175 pounds, a high-waist, long-limbed hitter with high-end strength projection. He typically performed well against live pitching as an amateur with advanced plate discipline, and while there’s some length to his swing as he’s grown, there are flashes of power now with a chance for significantly more juice to come. Lantigua is an above-average runner who has made progress with his reads and routes in center field and has a solid-average arm, so there’s a chance he could stick there, though some scouts think he could end up in a corner as he fills out.

Yensi Rivas, SS, Dominican Republic: Rivas stood out for his ability to hit from both sides of the plate when he signed at 17 for $500,000. He’s a contact-oriented hitter from both sides of the plate, with an especially sound swing from the left side. Rivas has the hand-eye coordination that leads to a low swing-and-miss rate. He has grown into a more physical 6-foot, 170-pound frame with broad shoulders that has allowed him to start driving the ball with more jump off his bat, though his offensive game will probably center more on his on-base skills than power. He’s an average runner who is light on his feet at shortstop with an above-average arm, with his defense having improved to give him a better chance to stay at the position, though second base could be another landing spot for him. 

Leandy Mella, SS, Dominican Republic: Another $500,000 signing for the Mets, Mella has electric bat speed. He’s 5-foot-10, 170 pounds at 17 with fast hands and the ability to whip the barrel through the zone with ferocity to generate big power, especially for his size. It’s an aggressive approach he will have to reign in, but if everything clicks he has a chance to be a power-hitting, offensive-minded middle infielder. He’s an average runner who could see time at shortstop and has a chance to stick there if he can improve his fringe-average arm strength, but he might settle in at second base. 

Bohan Adderley, SS/OF, Bahamas: Adderley was still available relatively later in the process before signing at 17 for $350,000. He’s a rangy 6-foot-3, 180 pounds and stood out as an amateur for his mix of athleticism and righthanded power potential. Coming from the Bahamas, Adderley hasn’t regularly seen the same level of pitching compared to players in his class from the Dominican Republic, so while there could be an adjustment period in the DSL this year, since signing he has impressed with his ability to control the strike zone. He has also made quick defensive progress at shortstop. He’s a plus runner who might ultimately outgrow the position, either sliding over to third base or taking his long, gliding strides out to center field. 

Vladi Guerrero, OF/1B, Dominican Republic: Guerrero, the son of Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero, signed for $117,000. Born in Miami, Guerrero is already 6-foot-2, 220 pounds at 17 with his value coming from what he’s able to do in the batter’s box. He’s a lefty who has taken quality at-bats and can drive the ball with power. Guerrero trained as an outfielder and will split time as a left fielder and first baseman this year. 

Sleeper Watch

The Mets spent most of their money on hitters, but a couple of intriguing pitchers have started to garner attention as well. Righthander Leyvi Rodriguez, an 18-year-old from the Dominican Republic who got $40,000, is 6-foot-2, 195 pounds with a fastball that was sitting in the low-90s and had touched 94 mph coming into the year but has already ticked up to reach 96 mph. He attacks hitters at the top of the zone and has shown feel for a tumbling changeup that’s ahead of his curveball. 

Dominican righthander Maxgregori Harvey, a 17-year-old signed for $50,000, hitting 92 mph before signing but has trended up as well, touching 94. He’s a lean 6-foot-2, 180 pounds, moves well on the mound and could see another velocity boost once he fills out. Harvey has flashed feel for a breaking ball that’s more advanced than his changeup.