How social media forced Mets’ hand in calling up top prospect
It’s tough to keep a secret in today’s technologically advanced world. All it takes is one click of a button to send information — true or false, good or bad — soaring into cyberspace, where it’s there to be consumed and dissected by the entire world.
The New York Mets were reminded of that reality on Saturday, and it actually forced them to change their plans surrounding top outfield prospect Brandon Nimmo.
While the baseball world awaited official news of Jose Reyes’ return to the Mets, this tweet by a reporter in Nimmo’s home state of Wyoming managed to capture some attention.
Typically when a notable prospect is nearing a call up there’s a palpable buzz. That wasn’t the case with Nimmo. Instead, this report basically came out of nowhere, which left fans puzzled.
Given the source, many questioned the validity of the report. However, as many others rationalized, Wyoming isn’t exactly a big state. Chances were good that the reporter was connected to a solid source, otherwise there would be no benefit to sending the tweet.
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As it turns out, the Mets were indeed planning on promoting Nimmo. That news was made official early Saturday afternoon. However, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reports that the original plans didn’t call for Nimmo to be activated until after Saturday’s game.
In fact, Nimmo wasn’t even in Atlanta three hours before first pitch.
The whole thing is pretty awkward. The Mets probably planned on having a long conversation with Conforto about his demotion before unveiling Nimmo, but the news leak made it impossible to put it off.
As for where the blame might go. It’s anybody’s guess, but given where the story originated, chances are it came from the Nimmo side of the equation. Obviously, he would have been anxious to share the news with family members and friends, some of whom may even travel to Atlanta on Saturday.
Regardless, the Brandon Nimmo era is upon us. The 23-year-old outfielder was actually the first pick of the Sandy Alderson regime, going 13th overall in the 2011 draft. He’s been slow to progress since, but seemed to be hitting his stride at Triple-A Las Vegas this season, batting .328/.409/.508. He projects as a top-of-the-order hitter, which the Mets could use now that David Wright is out and Michael Conforto has been demoted.
Speaking of Conforto, this is by no means a declaration of dissatisfaction on the Mets part. He just needs some time to collect himself after hitting .148/.217/.303 over his last 44 games. He’ll be back soon, and the hope is the Mets will be a more complete team when that happens.
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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Townie813
