Inside The Mets

Mets top prospect Ryan Clifford praises this veteran's leadership

New York Mets prospect Ryan Clifford received spring training wisdom from one of New York's veteran players.

Grant Young

Feb 12, 2025; Port St. Lucie, FL, USA; New York Mets first baseman Ryan Clifford (87) works during a Spring Training workout at Clover Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
Feb 12, 2025; Port St. Lucie, FL, USA; New York Mets first baseman Ryan Clifford (87) works during a Spring Training workout at Clover Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
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One of the coolest parts of MLB spring training is that an organization's top prospects will typically be slotted in the big league camp for the first few weeks, which means that fans get to see their team's future and present sharing the field.

New York Mets No. 4 overall prospect Ryan Clifford was one of the young guys who took part in the Mets' big league camp over the past month. And during Sunday's Spring Breakout game, Clifford crushed a majestic home run that traveled a whopping 449 feet before hitting off of the batter's eye in center field.

There's no question that the 21-year-old has a ton of natural pop and seems destined to arrive in Queens some time over the next couple of seasons. For now, however, Clifford will be starting the 2024 campaign in Double-A.

When speaking with the media Sunday, Clifford mentioned one Mets veteran player he has connected with over the past month.

Read more: This Mets roster decision looms large before 2025 season

"I think just to get to see kind of how they carry themselves. It was cool to watch their day-to-day work, and just the environment there. They're excited, they're ready for the season to start, they're ready to get after it. As all of us are," Clifford said when asked about his biggest takeaway from big league camp, per an X post from SNY.

Clifford was then asked if he picked the brains of any big leaguers.

"I think [Jesse] Winker was probably the best one for me," Clifford said with a smile. "As far as getting to see him hit and kind of have some similar approaches at the plate. He's a great guy overall."

It's awesome to hear that Winker is investing time sharing wisdom with some of New York's stars of tomorrow.

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Grant Young
GRANT YOUNG

Grant Young covers the New York Mets and Women’s Basketball for Sports Illustrated’s ‘On SI’ sites. He holds an MFA degree in creative writing from the University of San Francisco, where he also played Division 1 baseball for five years. He believes Mark Teixeira should have been a first ballot MLB Hall of Fame inductee.

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