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Mets Promote Outfielder Who’s Been Red Hot At Triple-A
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- Mets Promote Outfielder Who’s Been Red Hot At Triple-A
The New York Mets announced that they've selected first baseman Christopher Morel after he signed a minor league deal with the Mets at the end of June, according to a report from Mark Polishuk of MLBTradeRumors.com that also reference material from Mike Rodriguez of Rompiendo Sports.
Morel earned his way to the majors with a serious hot streak. He's slashed .321/.382/.716 with 12 homers over his 123 plate appearances for Syracuse, so the Mets are promoting him to see if he can come anywhere close to those numbers at the next level.
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He did the same thing in the Chicago Cubs farm system in 2022-23, and he slashed .241/.311/.471 with 42 homers over 854 PA in the majors over those two seasons, according to Polishuk. Morel hit 24 homers for the Cubs and the Tampa Bay Raysin 2024, but his slash line was low at .201/.283/.351 in his last 989 big league plate appearances.
The Rays non-tendered Morel during the winter, and he signed a one-year deal with the Miami Marlins, but Miami designated the outfielder for assignment and released him after he posted an OPS of just .425 with 28 strikouts in 73 plate appearances.
The Marlins are responsible for the rest of Morel's salary, so the Mets are basically taking a flyer on him for free. The Mets are well out of playoff contention, so it makes sense for them to find out if his latest minor league hitting binge is the real deal. The Mets would welcome the production, as they still have multiple holes in their lineup with Juan Soto out for an extended stretch. New York has been playing better, however, with the Mets posting a 10-3 mark since the deadline.
Morel's big weakness is on defense, where he's been considered a question mark wherever he's played. He's played everywhere at Syracuse, including time at first, second and third as well as both corner outfield positions. The Mets could use Morel in a similar role, or they could give him a chance to stick at a specific position, especially if he starts to hit.
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The Mets will also have to make an accompanying roster move to accommodate him, with Cristian Pache and Gabriel Arias the leading candidates to be the victim of that move. The Mets are starting to play winning baseball, so Morel likely won't be given much time to come up to speed and start to hit.
