Lesser Known Mets Minor Leaguers Get Invited To Major League Spring Training

As is the case throughout baseball each spring, the Mets have invited a handful of lesser known minor leaguers to join the more recognizable cast of Noah Syndergaard and Rafael Montero in big league camp next month.  In most cases, these players are just bring brought up for the experience, which is in no way a bad thing.  The team will evaluate how they fair against big league competition, but they will likely be headed back to the minors before spring training comes to a close.  There's no reason to suspect otherwise with these guys:

Daniel Muno:
Muno is a organization's 8th round pick from the 2011 Amateur Draft.  He was drafted out of Fresno State as a short-stop, but has predominantly played second base of late within the Mets system.  He spent last season with Double-A Binghamton where he hit just .249 in 127 games.  What he does do however, it get on base.  Muno has managed a .404 OBP throughout his professional career and walks.. a lot.  With the Mets lack of depth up the middle, Muno probably stands the best chance of any of these guys of cracking camp with the team.

Cory Vaughn:
If you feel like you remember this name, it might be because he was not protected last month during the Rule V draft.  Vaughn was drafted in the 4th round of the 2010 Amateur Draft out of San Diego State.  He will turn 25 this season and is reaching a crucial point in his career as he is already considered an older prospect.  Vaughn finished last season with Double-A Binghamton.  In just 262 at-bats at that level, Vaughn popped 10 home runs and hit for a .267 average, but also had a nearly 30% strike out rate during that time.  Vaughn is the type of guy who needs reps due to his injury history so while he's been invited to big league camp, don't expect him to be there long.

Jack Leathersich:
Leathersich was drafted in the 5th round of the 2011 Amateur Draft out of Umass-Lowell and has quickly progressed through the Mets minor league system.  Along the way, he also dominated.  That was until his reach Triple-A Las Vegas last summer where his walk rate nearly doubled.  On a positive note his strike out rate remained the same, which now hovers at an amazing 15.2 K/9IP throughout his professional career.  Jack is a major league talent and could eventually slot into a set up man type role on the team.  He may even crack the major league roster in 2014, but not this spring.  Jack needs to work out his control issues, and its doubtful the Mets will make him do that at the major league level.

Dustin Lawley:
A 19th round pick during the 2011 Amateur Draft from the University of West Florida, Lawley has played just six games above the Single-A level.  He did however show a lot of power last year in the Florida State League, belting 25 home runs in 122 games.  He prominently plays outfield and in this case is the characteristic spring time invite.  Lawley will see some action against big league pitching, but don't expect him to basically make the jump from Single-A baseball to the majors this spring..or this year for that matter.

Logan Verrett:
Verrett is a starting pitcher drafted out of Baylor University during the 3rd round of the 2011 Amateur Draft.  He will likely join the likes of Noah Syndergaard and Rafael Montero, who will also make starts this spring.  I mention them because they stand directly in the way of any change Verrett might have to join the big league club in the near future.  With that said, Verrett had a strong year in Double-A Binghamton where he posted a line of 12-6 with a 4.25 ERA over 146 IP.  Expect him to be sent down early on and continue his development in the minors.

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Updated 12:57 pm:

The Mets have no announced the full list of minor league invites that includes the following:

Pitchers:
Chase Bradford
Joel Carreno
John Church
Jeremy Hefner
Adam Kolarek
Jack Leathersich
Rafael Montero
Miguel Socolovich
Noah Syndergaard
Cory Mazzoni
Logan Verrett

Catchers:
Taylor Teagarden
Kevin Plawecki

Infielders:
Brandon Allen
Eric Campbell
Anthony Seratelli
Daniel Muno

Outfielders:
Dustin Lawley
Cory Vaughn
Brandon Nimmo