Although he was a third-round pick by the Mets just three years ago, one prospect that seems to not be getting the attention he deserves is Kirk Nieuwenhuis.
Over the past few years, the top outfield prospect has always been Fernando Martinez and rightly so. Injuries have definitely slowed his development as a well-rounded player, but it’s hard to argue with the potential the kid has.On the flip side, Nieuwenhuis has been producing at every level since his arrival into professional baseball in 2008, yet he continues to be overshadowed by the former teenage sensation that Mets fans are much more familiar with.
Just looking at his overall minor league statistics makes him look very promising. The first stat that stands out to me is the at-bats, and unlike Martinez, he has had a relatively injury-free minor league career so far. The next stat that really sticks out is the doubles and simply extra base hits as a whole (171 XBH). Hitting 38 doubles in 2009 and then topping that with 43 doubles this past season is nothing short of amazing. He’s currently at 15 doubles so far this year in Triple-A and is tied for third in the International League in that category. I’m not a stat buff by any means, but I’d venture to say that over the past three years, he’s likely in the top five or ten players in extra base hits collectively in the minor leagues.
Personally, I’ve seen him play live at the Double-A level numerous times as well as in spring training this year and he plays a great centerfield and covers a lot of ground out there. The only issue that I could see Nieuwenhuis having is the lack of ability to hit left-handed pitching, though it is not uncommon for left-handed hitting prospects to have this issue. He has not done well throughout his minor league career against southpaws, and this year is .235 versus lefties as opposed to the .336 he is hitting versus righties.
While I definitely see him in the picture for the Mets outfield in 2012, if Angel Pagan cannot return to 2010 form after he returns from his injury, I could see the Mets giving Nieuwenhuis an opportunity to play regularly. If you are interested more in seeing Nieuwenhuis play first hand, tune into SNY tonight at 7:00pm ET when the Buffalo Bisons take on the Charlotte Knights.
