Despite reports that the Mets were dropping their rookie level team in Kingsport, TN, it turns out that the Mets will not be fielding a Gulf Coast League team in 2012.  The GCL is the lowest level of professional baseball in the US, and is usually the first landing spot for high school draftees, and international free agents.

The games are played at a pretty low level, but it is the first exposure to professional baseball. This is the most important facet of rookie ball – the at bats and innings young players get.  In 2011, the GCL Mets collective had 1854 AB and threw 491 innings over 56 games.  Brandon Nimmo, Michael Fulmer and Joe Tuschak and others from the 2011 draft class made his professional debuts. Erik Goeddel and Kai Gronauer, minor leaguers from full-season leagues, used the GCL as a return to competitive action.

How much money could the Mets be saving here?  In player and coach salaries it’s probably about $250,000.  Travel costs were low, almost all of the team’s road trips were commutes with no hotel stays.  If I recall correctly, the Mets owned their own Florida bus (going rates on coach rentals are about $700-800 per day).  What other costs are there?  The team was paying for some of the dorms and food for their players.  This was probably a major cost. Insurance, which is probably not insignificant.  League dues, which are probably insignificantly small – under $10k annually.  Uniforms – also probably insignificant since the GCL team wore hand-me-downs.  David Waldstein in the New York times puts the annual cost of a GCL team at $750-800,000 annually.  For those keeping score at home, that’s roughly 1/5-1/4 of a Jon Rauch annually.

The real big issue will be the revised cost of operating the team’s Port St. Lucie complex over what used to be the GCL season.  However, the advanced-A team will still play at Digital Domain Park, so the complex will stay open.  The Mets will presumably still use their PSL complex for rehab.  So unless I’m missing something here, I just don’t see much cost-saving.  I do see the loss of developmental time and opportunities for young players.

The GCL had 15 teams, while the Arizona League had 13 teams in 2011.  Assuming no other teams drop their GCL or Arizona affiliates, the Mets will be one of just three Major League teams in 2012 who will not field a true rookie ball team.

SSA: @ Tri-City Valley Cats 7, Brooklyn Cyclones 4

This was a gut-wrenching defeat for the Cyclones, who rallied from down 2-0 to take a 4-2 lead in the seventh and then watched the bullpen give up a go-ahead grand slam in the bottom of the eighth.

2011 39th rounder Charlie Thurber had a perfect night, going 3-3 with a double, two walks, a run and an RBI, reaching base in all five plate appearances.

R – App: @ Kingsport Mets 9, Danville Braves 4

One thing stands out: Domingo Tapia (5-5, 3.78) 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K.  Since a 0.2 inning implosion at the end of July, Tapia has been lights out in August: 3-1, 1.13 ERA, 24 H, 17 H, 7 R, 3 ER, 9 BB, 15 K with a go/ao of 2.06.

R- GCL: GCL Nationals 13, GCL Mets 2

Hey, look CF Brandon Nimmo hit his first professional home run and drew his first walk, going 1-3 with a bomb and a walk.
In his second professional game, SS Philip Evans was 2-for-4 with a double.

SSA: @ Tri-City ValleyVats 7, Brooklyn Cyclones 4

SS Danny Muno just keeps hitting: 2-for-4 with a double and a walk.  The Mets eight-round pick out of Fresno State, the 22-year old Muno is sitting at .332/.434/.492, tops in the NYP in on-base percentage and third in slugging.

R – APP
Danville Braves 7, @ Kingsport Mets 5

LHP Juan Urbina, coming off one of his best outings of 2011 cruised through three innings, allowing just a single over the minimum before it fell apart on him in a six-run fourth inning. His final line: 4 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 2 HR.

R- GCL
@ GCL Mets 4, GCL Cardinals 2

SS Philip Evans, the Mets 15th round pick, who received the third-highest signing bonus in the Mets draft class, made his professional debut going 1-for-3 with a walk, a strikeout and two runs scored from the #3 spot in the batting order.
Hitting in front of Evans, CF Brandon Nimmo was 0-4 with three strikeouts. As people pointed out to me on both twitter and email, he’s now whiffed in seven of his last eight at bats. My response: chill. He’s played four games as a professional at age 18 without having played high school baseball.

Bob Gsellman, the Mets’ 13th rounder out of Santa Monica, made his first professional start, tossing three innings of one-run ball with no walks, two hits and a strikeout.

SSA: @ Brooklyn Cyclones 5, Jamestown Jammers (FLA) 2 

1B Cole Frenzel (.250/.346/.328), this year’s seventh round  pick out of Arizona was 3-4 with a double and an RBI.  After a slow start to his professional career and a .215/.315/.291 line in 20 games in July, Frenzel is rolling along at .324/.409/.405 in August.  He’s not hitting for much power yet, but at least he’s hitting for average.

Rain held Eduardo Aldama’s night to 2.2 so the bullpen had to pick up the slack.  Tyler Pill,  this year’s fourth-round pick out of Cal State Fullerton, tossed a scoreless inning with two strikeouts.

The Cyclones are now tied for the wild card lead (of course) and are three games out of first.

R- APP: @ Johnson City 1, Kingsport Mets 0

Yes. Domingo Tapia: 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, 2 WP.
Tapia’s three starts in August: 0.50 ERA (1 ER/18 IP), 12 H, 7 BB, 9 K.

R – GCL: @ GCL Cardinals 2, GCL Mets 1
Craig Missigman, this year’s 37th rounder out of HS in North Carolina: 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
SS Chin-lung Hu had a couple of hits.

NYP: @ Brooklyn Cyclones 5, Jamestown Jammers 2

SS Danny Muno (.341/.448/.494) was 1-3 with a double and a walk.  In 44 games, the 22-year old has extra-base hits in 9.8% of his plate appearances with exactly the same number of walks and strikeouts 32, a rate of 15.7%.  He’s also rocking a .412 BABIP.  Some of these things are sustainable, one is not.

3B Richard Lucas (.313/.404/.487) was 2-4.  Mike wrote about the 22-year old Lucas yesterday and his desire to prove people wrong.

Meanwhile, out of the bullpen, Jack Leathersich struck out four and walked one in 1.2 innings pitched.  In 8.2 innings pitched in Brooklyn, the Mets’ 2011 fifth-rounder faced 34 batters and fanned 20.  That’s crazy good.

Also, I loved, the Cyclones Brooklyn Nite Jerseys with the image of the bridge, which you can see below.

APP: Kingsport Mets 6, @ Johnson City Cardinals 0

Probably the best thing to happen in the system Wednesday night: Juan Urbina put together his best professional start. He shutout Johnson City on five hits and two walks with three strikeouts. In 17 innings in Augusta, he’s fanned 12 and walked four and run a 2.12 ERA. Whether you want to look at ERA, K/BB ratio, opponents’ batting average, Urbina has improved in every month of the 2011 season.

DH Cam Maron was 2-3.  The 20-year old, the Mets 39th rounder in 2009, is hitting .309/.417/.383 in 46 games for Kingsport.

GCL: GCL Marlins 15, GCL Mets 6

Bunch of interesting notes here actually:
Chin-Lung Hu continues to rehab. In eight games in the GCL, he’s hit .138 (4-for-29) with seven walks and six strikeouts and zero extra-base hits. He also committed his second throwing error.
Zach Dotson made his second appearance since returning from a 50-game suspension and recorded one out: 0.1 iP, 2 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 0 K. Dotson, who received the second-largest bonus in the Mets 2009 draft class, despite being selected in the 13th round, has thrown 1 inning this year and 17.1 in the GCL since signing.
Robert Gsellman, this year’s 13th rounder, tossed two scoreless innings.
CF Joe Tuschak, this year’s sixth rounder, was 2-3 with two walks to push his batting average back over .200 and up to .205/.333/.229.

SS-A: NL All-Stars 7, AL All-Stars 3

I will have more on this game later in the day.

SS-R: @ Kingsport Mets 7, Johnson City Cardinals 4

Jacob Lugo struck out six over 5 1/3 innings to lead Kingsport to the victory.  Lugo gave up three earned runs on six hits.

Brian Valenzuela came on to pitch 3 2/3 perfect innings for his first save of the season.

Yucarybert De La Cruz (2-3, HR, RBI) hit his first home run of the season, a solo shot in the 7th.

SS-R: @ GCL Astros 3, GCL Mets 2

Nick Carr made his second rehab appearance for the GCL Mets.  He pitched a scoreless inning, giving up a hit, a walk, and striking out one.

The GCL Mets will soon be the talk of the town once Brandon Nimmo and Phillip Evans suit up.  I would suspect they will play in a handful of games before the end of the season.