Mets Infield Prospect Continues Comeback Effort In AFL

The New York Mets have sent infield prospect Boston Baro to the Arizona Fall League, and they’re hoping Baro can continue his comeback from what Sam Dykstra of MLB.com called a “lost season” due to injuries. 

The prospect hit a three-run homer in a wild slugfest between Surprise and Peoria, and Baro’s blast temporarily gave Surprise a 5-1 lead in what eventually became a 12-11 loss. The Mets drafted Baro in 2023 based on his history as a California high school player, but he hasn’t spent a lot of time on the field since then, with a quad injury taking him out for most of last year. 

The prospect said that he was “devastated” by the injury, but Baro also added that it gave him time to get stronger, and he thinks he’s improved as a result. 

According to Dykstra, all of the games Baro has played this year have technicallly come on a rehab assignment, so he’s trying to make up for lost time. His contact rates have been excellent, but he hasn’t shown much pop so far, which made his home run against Peoria especially welcome. 

Baro’s prospect profile has him as a versatile infielder and a solid base runner, so he’s been focusing on hitting the weight room and better nutrition to make up for what the Mets see as his key weakness. He’s also working on staying back on the ball, and on driving the ball up the middle. 

The result was an exit velocity of 99.6 mph on the home run, and that’s how batted balls are judged these days. The rest of his stats are marginal, though, as Baro is hitting just .227 so far in his AFL stint, with the homer being his only extra base hit to date. 

Baro is also falling behind his fellow prospects. The Mets acquired infielder Jefferson Rojas at the deadline, and they added Bruin Agbayani and Billy Amick to the depth chart as well. Second baseman Mitch Voit is also being mentioned prominently as the Mets continue to sort out their offseason. 

That leaves Baro with a huge hill to climb to become relevant again, but for the moment he’s just enjoying back on the field for the first time in a while. He’s been stuck at the Mets’ development complex in St. Lucie, and he’s hoping to return to action in the low minors next year if he can stay healthy.