Mets Draw Prep Star in 2024 Mock Draft

The New York Mets were unable to measurably help themselves in the MLB Draft Lottery, which means their first-round pick dropped by 10 spots due to luxury tax thresholds.

But, with new president of baseball operations David Stearns leading the way, the Mets are already preparing for the 2024 Draft, which is set for All-Star weekend in Arlington, Texas, where the Mets will pick No. 19 overall.

Who will the Mets take with their selection? Baseball America published a 2024 first-round mock draft to start getting a measure of how this draft field will take shape.

The publication believes the Mets would take a two-way player and the cousin of a former Major Leaguer — Cam Caminiti.

Caminiti is a left-handed pitcher and outfielder with Saguaro High School, Scottsdale, Ariz. He is also the cousin of the late Ken Caminiti, who hit 239 home runs in his career and was the 1996 National League MVP.

In fact, the younger Caminiti is ahead of his class, thanks to a key decision he made:

Originally a member of the 2025 class, Caminiti reclassified and is now one of the younger preps in the 2024 class and will still be 17 years old on draft day. He’s also one of the most exciting lefthanded pitchers. Caminiti has a loose and easy delivery with a great pitcher’s frame and overpowers hitters with a fastball that’s regularly in the mid 90s. He has three promising secondaries that need further refinement, and has raw power as a hitter, though his pro future lies on the mound.

Caminiti has already signed a national letter-of-intent to play college baseball at LSU. He played in the 2023 All-America Classic and was selected a 13U Select Festival player in 2020 and a 14U Select Festival player in 2021.

The Mets are selecting in this slot because they, along with the Yankees and the Padres, exceeded the second threshold of the luxury tax and triggered a 10-spot penalty for their first overall picks.