Pitchers and Catchers report in 34 days!
In preparation, the Mets announced this week a list of additional non-roster players to come to camp. Non-roster invites run the gambit from prospect, to veterans trying to make a come back and to players who are prospects, but experts have predicted limited ceilings.
The latter is where Daniel Muno sits right now. He’s not listed as a top 15 prospect from Fan Graphs, or Baseball America in 2014, 2013 and 2012. At the end of the 2013 season, he didn’t make MLB.com’s top 20 prospects for the New York Mets. The only accolade he has received from any publication was in 2012 and 2013, Baseball America said he had the best plate discipline. However in 2014 he was replaced in that spot by Brandon Nimmo.
Muno was drafted by the Mets in 8th round of the 2011 draft from California State, Fresno. His first season with the Mets he mostly played shortstop, since then he has mostly played second but still has played at least 17 games at short each year. Offensively:
2011 (Brooklyn): 220 AB, .355 BA, .466 OBP, 23 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 24 RBI, 9 SB
2012 (St. Lucie): 289 AB, .280 BA, .387 OBP, 16 2B, 2 3B, 6 HR, 39 RBI, 19 SB2013 (Binghamton): 449 AB, .249 BA, .384 OBP, 27 2B, 3 3B, 9 HR, 67 RBI, 15 SB
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His first season in Brooklyn was tremendous. He hit for average, had some extra-base power and got on base. His on base and average, and extra base hits like doubles took a hit in 2012. His homerun power rose though, as did his speed.
In 2013, he had significantly more at bats, his batting average dropped farther but his on base stayed consistent. His doubles and homers rose in step with the increased at bats but his stolen bases dropped.
He has shown that he can hit, although it is troubling to see his numbers drop as he moves up in each league. Spring Training should be good for Muno to get some exposure to higher level pitchers in preparation for the 2014 season. He will be 25 this year, so his clock for breaking into the leagues is starting to tick. I don’t think he has much chance of breaking camp with the Mets this year, but he does have the opportunity to turn some heads and get on the short list for late season call-ups.
