Mets right-handed Christian Scott has been excellent to start the season at Triple-A.
The organization’s top pitcher picked up right where he left off after a standout campaign, allowing just two runs and striking out eight in two strong outings on the big league field.
Scott carried that success into the start of the regular season, pitching to a 3.20 ERA and a 0.78 WHIP while striking out 36 batters and walking just six in his first five starts for Syracuse.
The 25-year-old has struggled to limit the long pass, allowing seven home runs this season, but otherwise he has completely dominated International League competition.
Scott quickly caught the attention of many within the organization, including the Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefnerwho had nothing but good things to say during a recent appearance on “The presentation”Podcast with Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman.
“Scotty is in a good position, he’s throwing the ball really well,” Hefner said.
The youngster’s impressive fastball sits in the 97-98 mph range, and he bolstered his arsenal with new weapons this offseason, including a sweeper that looked downright dirty early on.
“This is another situation similar to [Mets RHP] Reed Garrett where he was a reliever after college and we prepared him as a starter with weapons to attack hitters,” the veteran pitching coach said.
“He’s always had a really good fastball and that’s still the case, but he’s added the sweeper to go along with his more traditional slider, and the splitter has really taken a step up in recent months.”
Scott’s newly developed arsenal has helped him quickly rise up several prospect rankings this offseason, including SNY Top 30 List, where it currently ranks sixth overall in the system.
While Hefner knows the upside certainly exists, the former MLB pitcher and fourth-year pitching coach remains in lock step with the president of baseball operations David Stearns and the rest of the organization’s stance on a potential draft.
“Scotty is doing exactly what he needs to do,” he said. “David mentioned it in his presser, but the major league need versus developing prospects and their trajectory in terms of where they are in their career have to line up sometimes.
“So that’s where we are with him and I think the challenge for Scotty right now is to continue to be consistent out there. He’s a major league pitcher, his time will come, it’s just a matter of when.”
