Former New York Mets prospect signs with A's

Jason Burke | 2 Hours Ago

Feb 19, 2024; Port St. Lucie, FL, USA; Detail photo of Mets helmet during workouts at spring training. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images / Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

The A's have signed former New York Mets prospect Carlos Cortes, according to the MiLB.com transactions log. He was originally selected by the Mets in the third round of the 2018 MLB Draft and has spent parts of the past three seasons in Triple-A, but has not yet made his MLB debut.

Cortes, 27, elected free agency at the beginning of the month, and subsequently signed a minor-league deal with the Athletics. Fun fact: the Mets also drafted him in 2016 in the 20th round, but he ended up going to the University of South Carolina for two seasons instead.

Cortes is a corner outfielder, listed at 5-foot-7, 197 pounds. In 83 games this past season, the lefty bat hit .246 with a .330 OBP, 16 homers, 52 RBI, and three steals in four tries. In 2021, he was ranked as the Mets' No. 19 prospect by MLB Pipeline, and is now one of three players from that top-30 that are with the A's, joining J.T. Ginn (Chris Bassitt trade) and Michel Otañez. Both Ginn and Otañez figure to be part of the A's plans in 2025.

FanGraphs graded his defense as a 20/30 on the 20-80 scouting scale, which is not a great sign and likely why he has been placed in the outfield, particularly corner outfield, in recent seasons. He is also ambidextrous, with his left arm being a little stronger than his right, and he switches which arm he throws with based on which position he's playing.

On top of the decent power, Cortes has also shown the ability to draw walks (11.5% in 2024) and limit strikeouts (18.7%).

The real question for Cortes is where he'll fit onto the roster after the A's decided to offer contracts to both Seth Brown and Miguel Andujar for 2025, leaving less playing time available for Cortes. We recently took a look at what Brown's role could be next year, since there are so many potential players that will be looking to secure playing time in left field for themselves.

Given that Cortes isn't on the 40-man roster, he's likely not too high on the A's depth chart at the moment. However, that can change as he acclimates himself to the organization and receives playing time in Triple-A to begin the season. Injuries happen. Trades happen. Underperformance happens. There is still a path to the big leagues for Cortes with the Athletics, it's just not as clear as some may expect.