SNY’s Joe DeMayo answers your Mets prospect questions…
What is your opinion of Elian Peña and what are the chances he is a phenom who could make the major leagues by 20? – @JeopardyJesseC on X
I, and more importantly, the Mets, are incredibly high on Peña, who ranked as the No. 9 prospect in the Mets system in my latest update.
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After signing with the Mets for a franchise record $5 million in January, Peña started his pro career in an 0-26 stretch in the Dominican Summer League.
In the remaining 46 games, Peña looked a lot more like the player they thought they were getting. He hit .341/.463/618 (1.081 OPS) with 13 doubles, a triple, nine home runs, 32 RBI, 18 stolen bases and walked more (33) than he struck out (29). He also had two separate three-home run games.
From a tools standpoint, Peña possesses strong bat-to-ball skills with a compact, quick swing and an advanced knowledge of the strike zone. This even dates to prior to him turning professional at either showcases or even in batting practice, where he would refuse to swing at pitches he deemed outside the zone as not to make a habit out of it.
From a power perspective, scouts project him to be above average with a chance for more as he physically matures. There have been public comparisons to multi-time All-Star Rafael Devers.
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Peña may have the highest upside of any prospect in the Mets system, and it would not shock me if he cracked top 100 prospect lists in the next 12 months.
Despite that, making the big leagues at 20 years old might be a tall ask. Peña will be 18 years old for the entirety of the 2026 season, where he will come stateside and either play for the Florida Complex League Mets or go straight to Low-A St. Lucie. To make it to the major leagues by 20, he would need to rise through every minor league level in just two years.
Could it happen? I try not to rule anything out, and if there is a prospect who could do it, Peña might be the one. I just think that is an aggressive timeline and leaves little room for error and development. He is an exciting prospect, and it could be a quicker ascent than your typical international free agent signing — just maybe not to the big leagues in two years.
Could A.J. Ewing make a huge jump on prospect lists this year? – @JahrellC on X
Absolutely. Ewing was the biggest riser in the Mets organization in the calendar year 2025. He just missed making the preseason top 30 list and climbed all the way to No. 6 in my most recent ranking.
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In 124 games split between three levels, reaching Double-A, Ewing hit .315/.401/.429 (.830 OPS) with 26 doubles, 10 triples, three home runs and 70 stolen bases.
His offensive profile is tailored to bat-to-ball and limiting swing-and-miss. There was a point in the season when I wondered if Ewing would finish with more stolen bases than strikeouts.
He’s currently spraying line drives and utilizing his legs on balls into the gaps. The next step in his development will be adding strength and impacting the baseball more.
As the Mets’ farm system continues to grow into one of the best in baseball, Ewing is a prospect who likely will land just outside of top 100 lists when the major publications update those.
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If Ewing can improve upon what he did in 2025, I suspect he will find his way into those top 100 lists. And as some prospects graduate from the Mets list, he could find himself very high in a midseason update.
