Inside The Mets

Mets Re-Sign Pair of Former Top Prospects to Minor League Deals

The New York Mets are bringing back two top prospects on minor-league deals.

Logan VanDine

Sep 24, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Grant Hartwig (93) throws a pitch during the fifth inning at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
Sep 24, 2023; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Grant Hartwig (93) throws a pitch during the fifth inning at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images / Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
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After letting go of these top prospects earlier in the offseason, the New York Mets are opting to bring back these rising prospects on minor league deals.

Will Sammon of The Athletic is reporting that New York is resigning both outfielder Alex Ramirez and relief pitcher Grant Hartwig to minor league deals; both had been non-tendered this last month.

Ramirez, who has struggled offensively in the minor leagues for the Mets, was viewed as having a strong free agent market, according to Sammon. Once regarded as one of the organization's top prospects, the 20-year-old will get another chance to show his potential to the team that drafted him.

The outfielder showed some promise with the bat in 2022 for both Single-A St. Lucie and High-A Brooklyn, as he combined to hit .281/.346/.436 with 30 doubles, seven triples, 11 home runs, and 21 stolen bases.

However, Ramirez struggled in 2023 as he spent the whole year at High-A, hitting .221/.310/.371 with just seven home runs and 53 RBI in 457 at-bats. He advanced to Double-A Binghamton for the 2024 season, but his production dropped even futher with a .210/.291/.299 slash line in 123 games. Ramirez's speed has remained a consistent bright spot, though, as he stole 21 bases in 2023 and 40 in 2024.

As for Hartwig, the 26-year-old relief pitcher made his major league debut in 2023 for the Mets and went on to make 28 appearances that year. In 35.1 innings pitched, he posted a 4.84 ERA and 1.38 WHIP with 30 strikeouts.

The righty then had an injury-plagued 2024 campaign, pitching just 6.2 innings and allowing six runs (five earned); Hartwig's season ended in June when he underwent surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his right knee.

With the Mets in need of bullpen depth and Ramirez showing promise on offense at the minor league level in the past, resigning both Hartwig and Ramirez are sensible moves for the Mets to make. Although neither are considered to be top prospects (with Hartwig no longer being considered a prospect at all), both can potentially play a role for New York in the future.

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Logan VanDine
LOGAN VANDINE

Logan is a graduate of Rider University where he majored in Sports Media and minored in Sports Studies. During his time at Rider, Logan worked for Rider's radio station, 107.7 The Bronc as a sports host, producer and broadcaster, and for the school's paper: The Rider News. He began his time with The Rider News as a section writer for sports and was a copy editor for two years followed by being one of the sports editors during his senior year. Logan also placed third in the New Jersey Press Foundation Awards for sports feature writing. Aside from his work on Yankees and Mets On SI, he is also a writer for FanSided covering the New York Giants and Mets and also covers the Giants for Total Apex Sports.

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