No suspense or click bait here – Marcos Molina is no longer on the Mets. He was released after a terrible first half of 2018 to make room for Matt den Dekker (who was a necessary signing and then immediately got injured) and then Molina got suspended for PED use.
Molina was signed by the Mets in 2012 and made it to Brooklyn at age 19 in 2014 where he was 2.4 years younger than the average player in the league. He posted a 1.77 ERA over 12 starts and 76.1 innings and blew up on everyone’s radar as a massive prospect. He then missed significant time due to Tommy John in 2015 and 2016.
When he came back in 2017, he was still able to post a 3.21 ERA over 18 games, 17 starts over two levels despite having a dip in velocity. Baseball America was still projecting him as a #4 starter since he was boasting a 60 control, he just needed to regain a few ticks on his fastball.
Then last year happened. In 16 starts between Binghamton and Las Vegas he posted a 6.94 ERA over 81.2 innings leading to his release.
Right now he is pitching for the Gigantes in the Dominican Winter League where he he has posted a 2.70 ERA over 4 relief appearances in 3.1 innings. I wouldn’t say his road to the majors is over, he’s still 23 years old. He just needs to find a team that will take a chance with him and let him serve his suspension. I do wonder if he’s candidate to go overseas to the KBO or NPB (I’m not sure if our suspension rules effect that).
