Major Nick Morabito Leap Incoming...

Major Nick Morabito leap incoming. The Mets prospect has spent most of the year in AAA but now Andy Green has an avenue for him to become an everyday player down the line here in September and try to audition for a more solidified role in 2027 and beyond. What's going on guys, I'm Josh Byrne, you're tuned into Mets Digest. Guys, thanks for all the recent support. Please do consider subscribing if you are not already as we've got so many exciting things coming at you down the line and the channel is only getting stronger so shout out to all of you guys. I really do appreciate it. Now, Nick Morabito is the latest call up from David Stearns. He also called up Justin Hagenman but we're going to focus more today on Morabito because let's be honest, no disrespect to Justin Hagenman but he is not necessarily a guy who's talked about as being part of the Mets future. Morabito on the other hand is someone that we have heard about for basically the past year is really climbing the rankings. He's led the Mets minor league system in a number of top line statistics and this year he's been one of the better bats for the AAA Syracuse Mets. In terms of what he has done at the AAA level this season, well it looks like this. He's put up a 7.43 OPS and that includes a 2.54 batting average and a 3.55 on base percentage with 13 home runs, 47 runs batted in, and very notably 42 stolen bases. So this makes sense when you think about the fact that the Mets just lost Luis Robert Jr. as he was claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Orioles. So who are those at bats going to be? Well, the second I heard that Luis Robert Jr. was claimed, first I was a little bit surprised that someone actually did that, but B, I immediately thought of Nick Morabito because Nick Morabito is another right-handed outfielder. He plays good defense and he has a somewhat similar but also different player profile from Luis Robert. Robert is more so a guy who hits for power. Morabito isn't going to hit for power, okay? This is a guy who is more of a grinder at the plate. When he's going right, he's going to make contact, he's going to spray the ball across the field, but he's not necessarily going to hit the ball over the wall. He's going to hit more line drives, put the ball in play, hit some infield singles, and also draw some walks. This guy is known to have a good eye at the plate. So despite the fact that he won't be putting up overly impressive power numbers, if he is at his best at Major League level, what you will see from him is a guy who can get on base and be a disruptor. And the thing that I believe is most confident amongst the Mets brass in terms of Morabito's skill set is what he can provide defensively and base running. If you look at prospect Savant as to what Nick Morabito was up to, well, what jumps off is his speed, all right? His speed is fantastic, but also notice that his swinging strike percentage and his whiff percentage, his walk percentage, they're all above average. So it shows he has a good eye. He's a decent contact hitter. Sometimes he can be a little bit passive at the plate. He's also not a guy that's going to light up the exit velocity metrics and be amongst the leaders there. But when he gets in charge of a ball, he can hit it very hard, which would lead you to believe that he can still grow into a little bit more power if he can harness more consistency in terms of him driving the ball. But again, that's not really his game. His game will be getting on base, drawing walks, putting the ball in play, and playing really good defense. Now, I think we have to set some fair expectations for Morabito. I don't think he's the level of prospect where he's expected to come up here and insert himself as a starter. He is not the level of prospect that Carson Benj was when he made his rookie debut this year. He's not even the level of prospect that AJ Ewing was when he made his debut this year. But what Nick Morabito is looking to do is to provide a route for the Mets not to acquire a veteran to be a fourth or fifth outfielder. Morabito is essentially a good candidate to replace not only Luis Robert, but Tyrone Taylor. And again, Tyrone had more power, but he was that fourth or fifth outfielder, that defensive replacement, a guy that could come in for speed on the bases, and also a guy that could play all three outfield positions very, very well, a right-handed bat. And now with both Tyrone Taylor on the Cubs, he's been on there a while, and also Luis Robert on the Orioles, there's no reason why Nick Morabito can't get at bats almost every day. Now, there has been one viewer who has consistently called for Christopher Murrell to get more at bats. Unfortunately, this is bad news for a guy like Christopher Murrell, because yesterday Christopher Murrell started in left field, and I don't know how many more days he's going to do that. But I do have to give a shout-out to both the viewer asking about Christopher Murrell, and also to Christopher Murrell himself, because he made a fantastic catch. Kind of a ball that he did get beat on, but he made up for it by leaping in the air and really saving the bacon of the Mets pitching staff there. Robert Stock very happy with Christopher Murrell, because that was what the bases loaded. Three runs could have easily scored, and that was a big reason why the Mets won. And Christopher Murrell is also a teammate favorite wherever he goes, apparently, so he's a really good guy. But I think Christopher Murrell will be losing at bats. I also think a guy like Brett Beatty, I think we've all seen enough of Brett Beatty at this point, so I don't think anyone would mind if Nick Morabito does take some at bats away from him. Same thing with Mark Vientos. They obviously play different positions, but in terms of the DH, you're going to have Soto essentially DA. I don't think Soto... I would say there is a legit possibility that Juan Soto does not play the field one more time this season. I just don't really see the reason or the benefit of that. Next year, I expect him to play a good amount of left field. I do also expect the Mets to start to progress his transition over to first base long term, because especially if Morabito provides a solid contribution at the major league level and can hold his own, then all of a sudden you've got Benj, Ewing, and Morabito, who will project to be plus defenders in the outfield. But in terms of Mark Vientos, he can't play first base very well. He'd be a DH candidate, and I know he hit a home run last night, but he's another guy like Brett Beatty, like Christopher Morel, that I think can and should have at bats taken away from them by Morabito. Now, if Morabito goes out there and stinks, I don't really think it's that big of a deal. I think there's a good chance he won't necessarily make it as a key contributor for the Mets as soon as next season, but I think you have to see, and I think this is the best chance. He's gotten a few at bats in the major leagues this year, but it was really a brief cup of coffee. This is his chance. He's had more seasoning at AAA. Let's see what he can do at the major leagues, and I, for one, am excited to see that happen. But let me know what you guys think down below about Nick Morabito. What are your expectations for him the remainder of the season, and do you think he can be a viable option to be an impact player for the Mets as soon as next year in a more regular role? Comment below. Let me know, and as always, guys, let's go Mets.