The Mets opened a new era for their amateur scouting department on Sunday night, selecting outfielder Carson Benge and left-handed pitcher Jonathan Santucci in the first two rounds of the MLB Draft. This is the first Mets draft run by vice president of amateur scouting Kris Gross, who was hired away from Houston in the offseason by president of baseball operations David Stearns.
The Mets’ first-round selection came at No. 19; it was dropped 10 spots from where it fell in the draft lottery because New York exceeded the luxury tax by more than $40 million last season.
No. 19 Carson Benge, OF, Oklahoma State
The basics: Benge — pronounced like the first syllable in “engine,” with a B — played two seasons at Oklahoma State following a redshirt year because of Tommy John surgery. In those two years, the lefty-swinging outfielder hit .339 with a .455 on-base percentage and .609 slugging. This past year, he collected 44 extra-base hits in 62 games.
On the mound, he pitched to a 4.88 ERA over the two years, with better results coming this past season as a swingman used in both the rotation and the bullpen. Benge said he’d like to at least try both hitting and pitching.
“He can do everything on a baseball field,” Gross said.
Carson Benge, shown pitching in the Big 12 Baseball Championship game, would like to continue as a two-way player in pro ball. (Mike Janes/Four Seam Images via Associated Press)
Benge hits the ball hard but not always in the air, and he mentioned lifting the ball more as a goal.
While Benge said he’d at least like to try staying a two-way player in pro ball, the Mets said that would have to be a conversation. Gross talked about how Benge’s body could fill out and how his power could expand if he concentrated more narrowly on hitting.
The insight: “He excited us with his approach in the box, his power at the plate and his athleticism in the outfield,” Gross said. “We think he can be a five-tool type center fielder long term.”
The fit: While Benge often played in a corner outfield spot with Oklahoma State, the Mets believe him capable of manning center field. He’s not exactly the first lefty hitter they think can play center that they’ve drafted in the first round in the last several years. Jarred Kelenic and Pete Crow-Armstrong ended up elsewhere pretty quickly.
The connection: The 21-year-old Benge could follow a blueprint drawn by Nolan McLean, his former college roommate in Stillwater. McLean, drafted last summer by the Mets in the third round as a two-way player, pursued both sides of the ball through the first three months of this season. In late June, however, as he climbed to Double A, McLean dropped hitting to concentrate more fully on pitching.
McLean served as a source of encouragement and insight for Benge all season; he said they’ve talked daily of late and that McLean was texting him non-stop after the Mets selected him.
“Seeing what he’s doing and what he’s going through has given me a pretty good idea” of what pro ball is like for a two-way player, Benge said.
“We’ve been trying to manifest this for a little while now,” McLean said of Benge joining him in the Mets organization. “He’s one of the most talented people I’ve ever been around.”
No. 46 Jonathan Santucci, LHP, Duke
The basics: The Blue Devils’ Friday night starter this past season, Santucci compiled a 6-1 record and 3.41 ERA, striking out more than 35 percent of opposing hitters. Duke went 11-2 in those starts in the highly competitive ACC.
The 21-year-old relies primarily on a four-seam fastball and slider, with an occasional changeup mixed in. He sits in the mid-90s with that fastball.
The insight: “It’s a complete repertoire,” Gross said. “It’s power stuff from the left side.”
The fit: The Mets have had a good amount of success recently with college pitchers moving swiftly through the system: Christian Scott most notably, but also Blade Tidwell, Brandon Sproat, Mike Vasil and Dominic Hamel. Santucci could follow that model from the left side.
Although he was exclusively a starter in his last two seasons in Durham, Santucci doesn’t have a lot of mileage on his arm. He didn’t pitch much as a high schooler in Massachusetts, and he missed time in 2023 with bone chips in his elbow and in 2024 with a rib injury.
The Mets are intrigued by how much more Santucci can develop that changeup with more time on the mound.
(Top photo of Carson Benge: Mike Janes / Four Seam Images via Associated Press)
