The Rockaway Wave
Originally Published May 29, 2026
JT Benson was at home training, getting ready for spring training for the independent league Lake Country DockHounds, when he got a phone call. His contract was purchased by the New York Mets. Less than a month before his 24th birthday, he was getting his first shot in affiliated baseball.
Three days later, Benson was in Port St. Lucie, Florida, as the newest member of the New York Mets.
“It was a crazy experience,” Benson said. “It happened really quick.”
For longtime Evansville Otters manager Andy McCauley, it’s one of the greatest joys of his job. Seeing Benson, whom he coached in 2025, picked up by the Mets, was an extra-special moment.
“It’s the reason I’m still doing this after 30 years,” McCauley said. “It’s one thing to send a kid back who’s been in affiliated and gets sent bad. That’s still a thrill. But a kid like JT, that I’m certain was on the draft boards, missed out on the draft, still had a desire to play, and went the independent route. It’s just a true success story.”
Benson played three college seasons for Louisville before going undrafted in the 2024 MLB Draft. He was scooped up by Lake Country a few weeks later and played 27 games for the DockHounds. Five former MLB players overlapped with Benson while he was with Lake Country.
“Played with some dudes up there,” Benson said. “Independent ball’s got some grinders, and got some dudes that have played many years in Major League Baseball. That experience, I learned a lot.”
In 2025, Benson was traded to the Evansville Otters in the Frontier League during spring training. He was traded for a player to be named later (PTBNL), which, when it comes to indy ball, is essentially just a formality. Players will technically be traded for a PTBNL, but McCauley said it’s more like one team doing another a favor. Then, if the opportunity presents itself down the road, that favor can be returned.
“It’s nothing that I’m counting on ever getting another player back,” McCauley said about instances when he trades a player away, and indicated that most other teams feel the same way.
McCauley has a good relationship with Tom Kelenic, owner of the DockHounds and father of former Mets No. 6 overall pick Jarred Kelenic. In this case, two executed something that closely resembles a loan in European football.
Benson was playing for the DockHounds in the American Association of Professional Baseball, a league that is generally filled with more experienced, veteran players. The Frontier League is more geared to players like Benson, who are fresh out of college.
So, Benson was sent to Evansville to play among other players closer to his experience level, with the understanding that Kelenic might want him back at Lake Country eventually. And, sure enough, after the 2025 season, Benson was sent back to Lake Country.
“It turned out JT Benson was the player to be named later,” McCauley chuckled. “I traded him back for himself.”
That is, of course, until the Mets stepped in.
“He obviously did what he was supposed to do down here,” McCauley said. “They were gonna take a look at him to start the year up there when the transaction with the Mets came through.”
After joining the Mets a couple of weeks into March and partaking in the final stages of spring training, Benson started his 2026 season with Single-A St. Lucie. He was a force at the plate, hitting .276/.361/.578/.939 with a staggering 20 extra-base hits in 33 games. Five of those were home runs, and another five were triples. This earned him a promotion to High-A in mid-May.
The promotion meant that in the span of two months, Benson went from playing in indy ball to playing in Brooklyn. The experience has been a whirlwind, but he said he knows it’s going to make for a great story one day.
“It’s the same game everywhere,” Benson said. “Just play it fast, play it with joy.”
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