The New York Mets 2018 second-round pick Simeon Woods-Richardson has already made it to Single-A. What makes his promotion incredible is that he is still 18-years old. All he needed was one season in rookie ball and earned the promotion to the Columbia Fireflies this season.
Simeon Woods Richardson struck out 6 in 5 innings of one-run ball last night for the @ColaFireflies.
The 18-year-old over his last 7 starts: 2.20 ERA, .552 OPS, 29.2% K, 7.7% BB, 73 pitches per outing. #Mets pic.twitter.com/EA4kztgb9C
— Jacob Resnick (@Jacob_Resnick) July 12, 2019
Through 73.1 innings in Columbia, he has a 4.54 ERA with 90 strikeouts. Those numbers are not dominant by any means but has been a lot better as of late. During his last eight starts, he has not allowed more than two runs. During the season he has only allowed 17 walks and five home runs.
When Will He Be a Met?
Woods-Richardson still has a ton of work to do before getting to the big leagues, but he has high potential. His biggest obstacles are his ability to get deep into games and consistency with his pitches. He will finish the year close to 100 innings though and is very much ahead of most pitchers at his age.
In terms of his pitches, Woods-Richardson features a strong arsenal. His fastball is in the high-90s, a sharp 11-5 curve, along with a slider and change-up. He definitely projects as a starting pitcher, but it is the development of his other two off-speed pitches that will take him over the top.
Mets Top Prospect Watch: Simeon Woods Richardson dominating, Andres Gimenez heating up https://t.co/ReulaH5NB6 pic.twitter.com/KQTmXiIh2O
— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) July 15, 2019
There were questions on what exactly Woods-Richardson’s velocity was when he was drafted, but he quieted that the second he made his professional debut. His projection to the big leagues is as early as 2022 and could be in double-A as soon as next year. The Mets will have to be patient with their young prospect, but as the #12 prospect in the Mets system, they have to pleased with his early growth.