Mets 2014 College Free Agent Mike Gibbons to Make Pro Debut with St. Lucie

Image from this announcement about his signing

With Akeel Morris heading for the big apple, St. Lucie needed another arm, and so Mike Gibbons will suit up with a chance to get his first pro action as a starter

UPDATE: Gibbons has been added to the Cyclones initial roster, and Manager Tom Gamboa said he was an arm to watch

            As is usually the case with College Free Agents, the Mets signing of Mike Gibbons last August garnered little attention to those outside of the Wheaton College/Simsbury, Connecticut (Gibbons hometown) area, but he’s garnered enough attention within the organization that the Mets added him to St. Lucie’s roster Monday. The St. Lucie Mets have an open roster spot with Akeel Morris promoted to the New York Mets, and Gibbons is scheduled to make the start Monday night. It would appear that this was just a temporary move, and that he is headed for Brooklyn at the end of the week.

            Gibbons (22) is a big righty (6’3”) who caught the attention of Mets special assistant to the GM, J.P. Ricciardi, last July 26^th at the FCBL Pro Day, when he was hitting 95 MPH on the gun with his four-seamer. He also throws a running two-seamer, a slider, and a changeup, and has apparently made big strides in his mechanics with the Wheaton coaching staff over the past few seasons. He recently pitched in summer ball with the Futures Collegiate Baseball League in 2014, striking out 59 batters (3^rd in the league) in 50.2 IP. This came after a junior season where he went 4-1 with a 1.89 ERA and 37 K’s in 57 IP – that K total is much less impressive, but he held hitters to a .203 batting average in his Junior campaign.

            He appeared in a Perfect Game showcase back in August, 2010, and they seemed to like him.

Michael Gibbons is a 2011 RHP/3B, OF with a 6-3 170 lb. frame from Simsbury, CT who attends Avon Old Farms. Gibbons has a long lean athletic frame, high 3/4 arm slot, long loose arm action, fastball shows good hard arm side run, good command of pitches, curveball shows 12/6 spin, big breaking curveball, good use of lower half, hits from a square stance, line drive swing plane with mid field contact, is short to baseball and extends through ball, defensively, good actions, quick transfer and release, solid carry on throws, he is also a good student. 

            He threw a no-hitter while pitching in the FCBL in the summer of 2013, which he discussed here.

Check out more at his Wheaton profile page here. The Mets have had some success bringing in undervalued players over the past few seasons, so hopefully Gibbons can be another minors success story.

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— Corey S. Powell (@coreyspowell) June 15, 2015