Get To Know A Mets Minor League Player: Val Pascucci

Val (Valetino) Pascucci is a Minor League Veteran, who is on the outside looking this Spring. Pascucci put together a really strong 2011 season, but he is not on the 40-man roster, so for him to break spring with the Mets going North, he is going to have to have a really strong Spring Training. Val is 33 years old and led all of the Mets system in RBI with 91 and was second in the Mets system with 21 homers. He also finished the season with a brief stint with the major league club:

Minors: 443 AB, 58 R, 117 H, 29 2B, 1 3B, 21 HR, 91 RBI, .264 BA, .375 OBP
Majors: 11 AB, 1 R, 3 H, 1 HR

What Pascucci has going for him, is what he has always had going for him. He packs some pop in his back. In fact, back in 2007 he had 34 minor league homers. In his time in the Minors, he has smacked 234 balls over the wall.

He first started in the Minors way back in 1999 at the age of 20. He came up through the Montreal system where he debuted in 2004. After the 2004 season, he was released by the newly minted Washington Nationals and went to Japan until 2007. He then signed with the Cubs in January of 2007, only to be released by them in March. The Marlins then signed him, and then after 2007 he returned to free agency, where he signed with the Phillies. At the end of April in 2008, he was released by the Phillies, where he was actually signed by the Mets. At the end of the 2008 season, he went back to free agency where he was picked up by the Dodgers. In June of 2009 he was released by the Dodgers and then he signed with the Padres. Finally, before the start of the 2010 season, he was signed by the Mets, again and then resigned by the Mets this offseason.

The purpose of the above paragraph is to show how he has traveled quite a bit, and has played for several teams in the NL East including the Expos, Phillies, Marlins, and the Mets twice. Realistically, he needs a monster spring to show the Mets that he is a powerful option to have coming off of the bench.