The Rockaway Wave
Originally published June 16, 2023
The New York Mets don’t currently have a ton of high-level pitching depth in the minor leagues. The organization’s top-4 prospects on MLB Pipeline — and the only four who make the MLB top-100 list — are all position players.
They have a few arms in the top 10, most notably former Brooklyn Cyclone Mike Vasil (No. 8), who just got promoted to Triple-A, and current Brooklyn Cyclone Blade Tidwell (No. 5).
Tucked away towards the bottom of the organizational top 30 though is right-hander Christian Scott, who currently sits at No. 27.
Scott just earned a promotion to Double-A this week, but in the time he was in Brooklyn, he shined.
“I’m just trying to keep building off of the previous start,” Scott said. “Our rotation has really been picking it up as of late. Tyler Stuart’s been pitching incredible, Blade’s been throwing great, [Jeffrey] Colon’s been throwing great. So, I think we’re all really doing a good job of building off each other.”
In six starts and 23.2 innings with Brooklyn in 2023, Scott posted a 2.28 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 27 strikeouts to just four walks. On the season, even when factoring in a two-inning, two-run rehab start with the Low-A St. Lucie Mets, Scott has put up some of the best numbers across the entire Mets system.
Among 25 Mets minor leaguers with at least five starts, Scott is third in ERA, only behind Stuart and Joey Lucchesi. He is second in WHIP behind Vasil, third in strikeout percentage behind Tidwell and Stuart and first in walk percentage. He is also fourth in batting average against, second in swinging strike percentage, first in FIP and xFIP, and is one of two who haven’t given up a home run.
Scott had a stint with Brooklyn last season as well, making six appearances (five starts) toward the end of the season and putting up a 3.80 ERA. That’s good, but he has turned a real corner this season, which is something he in part credits to the work he did in the offseason on his lower half.
“Early on, I would be a little bit inconsistent late in outings,” Scott said. “But being able to have a lower half be a little bit more consistent, helps with the velo and also helps go later in games.
So being able to really take that and be more consistent, I would say, was the best thing for me this offseason.”
The consistency Scott has shown is what Cyclones manager Chris Newell pointed out as the biggest difference he’s seen in his young starter from 2022 to 2023.
“He’s just gotten more consistency, more comfortable,” Newell said. “When you get to this level, you’re dealing with better players than which you were the level before and the year before. I’ve always said those who make the necessary adjustments will wear the uniform longer, because that means you’re gonna be more consistent. And he has epitomized that.”
Another contributing factor has been his change in mindset when on the mound in terms of how he attacks hitters. Scott said he likes to try to keep hitters off-balance with his splitter and slider so they’re not comfortable in the box, along with just focusing on winning each pitch.
“Early in my career, I definitely was thinking about the bigger picture rather than really narrowing it down to win each pitch,” Scott said. “But baseball is really pitch-to-pitch, so even if one pitch doesn’t go your way, being able to flush it and move onto the next one, I think that’s huge, especially for continuing to build good starts.”
The Mets drafted Scott out of the University of Florida in the 5th round of the 2021 MLB Draft.
“It was awesome,” Scott said. “Being able to spend that time with my family, they were really the ones who helped me get there. God’s always been great to me. So just being able to take time to be with them, and really enjoy the moment with them was the best part for me for sure.”
Scott was primarily a reliever in college, just like former subject of The Brooklyn Cyclones Report Tyler Stuart. He did have experience going multiple innings in relief, but made just four starts in 55 appearances over years as a Gator.
Scott said he has shaped his repertoire around the transition to starting, going from throwing over 50% sliders at Florida to a more balanced attack now that he has to go multiple times through the order.
“With being a reliever, it’s kind of just go out there and throw as hard as you can, get as many quick outs as you can because you’re only going to be out there for a certain amount of time,” Scott said. “But as a starter, you’re really going to be able to see that lineup two or three times, so you’re not trying to think ahead, but more learning from their swings early. As a reliever, you’re not really too worried about that because you’re probably not going to face them twice. But being a starter, definitely being able to read swings, know what they’re looking for, dig deep into scouting reports and just be able to feed off of them.”
Now promoted to Double-A Binghamton, he is going to be a player the Cyclones rotation will severely miss.
“He’s huge for us,” Newell said after what ended up being Scott’s final start for the Cyclones. “Every time he takes the mound I know we’re gonna compete.”
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