Mets' newly acquired prospects Luisangel Acuna and Drew Gilbert looking towards a fruitful future in the Big Apple
Mets prospects Luisangel Acuna, left, and Drew Gilbert during a game between the Binghamton Rumble Ponies and Somerset Patriots on Tuesday. Credit: Ed Murray
BRIDGEWATER, N.J. — For Luisangel Acuna and Drew Gilbert, the centerpieces of the Mets’ trade-deadline selloff, the present is complicated enough. After a whirlwind week, they are settling into their new life with a new franchise, playing in a new league, in a new part of the country, getting to know new teammates, including each other.
But the excitement stemming from their sudden presence in the Mets organization is all about the future.
Acuna, a 21-year-old infielder, was the Mets’ reward for trading Max Scherzer to the Rangers. Gilbert, a 22-year-old outfielder, was one of two players to come over in the deal that sent Justin Verlander back to the Astros.
The Mets swapped out two aces — two virtual locks for the Hall of Fame — plus up to $88 million to help cover their salaries over the next couple of years for these two young players.
“It’s pretty crazy,” Gilbert said. “I think it’s something that you understand is always a potential part of the business, but at the end of the day, the guy is a future Hall of Famer. So I’m just very grateful . . . I could think that [getting traded for Verlander is a compliment] all I want, but if I don't go out there and get the job done, doesn’t really matter. So it's about showing up every single day and [putting] my team in the best position I can.”
Acuna, using an interpreter, echoed: “It was something that I wasn’t expecting. But thank God I’m here right now.”
Decked out in Rumble Ponies gear, both spoke Tuesday afternoon before Double-A Binghamton played the Somerset Patriots, the Yankees’ affiliate — their future Subway Series rivals, maybe — at TD Bank Ballpark.
Seizing on the outside interest in Acuna and Gilbert, the Mets turned interview requests from a couple of reporters into a sort of media circus that is rare in a minor-league setting: inviting more outlets, recruiting SNY to send a camera, bringing their own social-media presence.
Sixty-three miles and two bridges away, the major-league Mets continued to play out a lost season, hosting the Cubs. These minor-leaguers are supposed to be part of a better tomorrow, if not literally tomorrow.
“It’s exciting to have some top prospects from other organizations in our organization now and really blossom our farm system,” Binghamton manager Reid Brignac said. “I know it was a hefty price for those guys, and they understand that. We want them to come and do what they’ve been doing and help our farm system get better — but eventually help our big-league team.”
Acuna showed a glimpse Tuesday of what the Mets like about him: patience at the plate (drawing a walk off Yankees prospect Chase Hampton), speed (stealing three bases to bring his season total to 46) and some sneaky power out of what is listed as a 5-8, 181-pound frame (smoking a double to left-centerfield, also off Hampton).
“It looks like he’s swinging a toothpick,” pitching prospect Dominic Hamel said.
The first thing Brignac mentioned about Acuna was his “explosiveness.” Gilbert described him as “a pretty electric player, obviously.”
Luisangel Acuna runs out a double during a game between the Binghamton Rumble Ponies and the Somerset Patriots in Bridgewater, N.J., on Tuesday. Credit: Ed Murray
He is not as advanced as his brother, Atlanta NL MVP candidate Ronald Acuna Jr., was at the same age. But he has his eyes on the majors all the same.
“I hope to be there pretty soon,” Acuna said.
For now, while he adjusts to new surroundings, Acuna is playing shortstop. Brignac said the Mets will put him somewhere else “at some point.” With the major-league shortstop job locked up by Francisco Lindor, Acuna said he hopes to settle in long-term at second base; he also has dabbled with centerfield.
The big challenge at second, he said: backhanding ground balls.
“Since I switched over, I've been working on it a lot,” Acuna said. “My defense is very good, playing at short. Playing second base, I'm starting to feel very, very comfortable there.”
Gilbert, like Acuna, is diminutive, listed at 5-9 and 195, and maybe not that big. But he is fast. After his two-run single plated Acuna in the third inning, he scored easily from first when J.T. Schwartz’s line drive found the right-centerfield gap.
Drew Gilbert of the Binghamton Rumble Ponies makes the catch during a game against the Somerset Patriots in Bridgewater, N.J., on Tuesday. Credit: Ed Murray
His fast feet, plus a willingness to run into walls, teammates, or whatever else, serves Gilbert well in the outfield, where he has played all three spots. Blade Tidwell, a Mets pitching prospect and Gilbert’s teammate at Tennessee, said he is an “elite” defender.
“Let's be honest: Everyone wants to play center,” Gilbert said. “But that’s obviously a very hard thing to do, and your value increases, no matter who you are, if you play all three. That’s something I was able to learn a little bit in college and a little more with Houston throughout the year. I've been able to get plenty of games and reps at all three. Obviously, I'm most comfortable playing center.”
Answers to the position questions are for another day. In the Mets’ intended return to true championship contention in 2025 and beyond, Acuna and Gilbert want to play a role, no matter where on the field.
“Ideally, I'd love to say we're winning the World Series at the end of October,” Gilbert said of the future. “Obviously, that's probably an incredibly hard thing to do. And I've never even experienced a major-league game, so tough to say off the riff. But if you're not playing for that, I don't really know what your goals are. So that's what I want to do.”
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
