by Towards the end of spring training, the New York Mets Prospects defeated the Washington Nationals Prospects 5-1 in the 2025 Spring Breakout game. Nick Morabito and Kevin Parada had multi-hit games, Ryan Clifford hit a home run, and pitchers Jonah Tong, Jonathan Pintaro, Jonathan Santucci, Dylan Ross, and Ryan Lambert combined to hold the Nats to just seven hits.
The Cyclones, both past and future, were well represented. All of those players had strong days, but 20-year-old Boston Baro — the No. 8 hitter — stole the show.
“It was awesome,” Baro said. “Especially playing with all of our top talent and also the Nationals’ top prospects. It was just a super cool and surreal experience to be part of.”
Baro started his day by cracking a solo home run to the opposite field, immediately turning heads. Baro, a lefty, had hit just four home runs in over 400 plate appearances the year prior. The opposing pitcher, Alex Clemmey, a lefty, is the No. 5 overall prospect in Washington’s system on MLB Pipeline and had given up just four home runs in 92 and ⅓ innings the year prior.
It’s not a matchup that anyone expected to end in a home run, but Baro crushed it and put the Mets on the board to lead off the third inning.
Baro singled in the fourth to pick up his second hit of the day, and would come around to score on a Morabito single two batters later. He finished his day 2-for-3 after flying out to right field in the 5th, and his five total bases led all batters in the game.
“Just one of those guys that has the ability to rise to the moment,” Adam Sorgi, Baro’s coach at Capistrano Valley High School in Mission Viejo, California, said. “I won’t be surprised at anything that he does. He can make it work on the bases, in the field, and in the batter’s box. So, not surprised, but just genuinely happy for him because he’s just a really great kid.”
Two moments stick out to Sorgi for when he first thought he could be looking at a professional baseball player. One was when Baro showed off his bat control and pure hitting ability — one of his most highly-touted attributes — to lace a “wicked” two-strike splitter from a Stanford commit into right field for a base hit.
“It’s rare for a guy to be able to command the strike zone, but then hit pitches that are pitchers’ pitches,” Sorgi said. “I think that’s what stood out to me at the high school level, making difficult plays look easy and being able to hit pitches outside the zone consistently on the barrel, which is pretty special for that age.”
The other was a home run he hit on a 3-2 fastball, left on left.
“He took a ball at about his eyelids and hit it about 370 to right, way over the fence,” Sorgi said. “And I was like, I don’t know how he got to that ball.”
The pitcher was throwing mid-80s, so it wasn’t overpowering stuff. But in the moment, after the pitcher had just set him up with two left on left sliders with a base open, Baro’s ability to turn on the heater and send it out was when Sorgi thought he was watching someone special.
He didn’t hit for much power last season and might not end up as a true power threat, but some do expect him to grow into a bit more pop. Sorgi said he could see him as an eventual 20-to-30 home run guy, and a Baseball America article — which polled scouts about who impressed on the spring training backfields this year — mentioned Baro as someone who caught scouts’ eyes and said he has a “long, loose frame that should have plenty of room to stack on more strength.”
Baro said he isn’t specifically trying to add power; he’s just trying to get stronger.
“That power is gonna come eventually as I’m getting older,” Baro said. “Just taking the gym very serious has been a big goal of mine.”
He’s hit one home run this season, and it came at home, which isn’t an easy feat for left-handed hitters to accomplish out on Coney Island in a very pitcher-friendly ballpark. If you include his Spring Breakout homer, he’s already halfway to his total from all of last year.
An 8th-round pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, the Mets went way over the slot value of $192,900 to sign Baro away from his UCLA commitment, giving him $700,000. He received the fourth-highest bonus of any Mets draft pick in 2023, only behind first, second and third-round picks Colin Houck, Brandon Sproat and Nolan McLean.
He spent most of his 2024 season with Single-A St. Lucie, hitting .288/.368/.399/.767 with just 66 strikeouts in 370 plate appearances. His 17.8% strikeout percentage was the 27th best of 180 Single-A batters to record at least 300 plate appearances, including being the best among Mets hitters who qualified.
He received a promotion to High-A to finish out the year, joining the Cyclones and manager Gilbert Gómez. Baro was then managed by Gómez again in the Spring Breakout game, and is back with Gómez’s ‘Clones to begin 2025.
“We think he is a guy that is poised to have a breakout season,” Gómez said. “A guy that can put the ball in play, spread the ball around. There’s some power in there, within that frame. He’s getting stronger every year. Can play short, third, second base. Great arm. We’re really excited for what the future holds for him.”
Mets hitting coach Bryan Muniz echoed Gómez’s expectations for Baro this season.
“Expectations are high,” Muniz said. “He knows it. He’s super talented, super young too. Character is amazing. Being so young, and being around some of the older guys, and fits right in. Very mature presence in the box, is definitely way more advanced than what his age shows. He has high expectations of himself, so we’re just gonna hold him to that.”
As for Baro, his goal is to stay healthy and be consistent both at the plate and on defense.
“Control what I can control, and hopefully move up the ladder quickly,” Baro said.
The Brooklyn Cyclones season is underway! For promotion and ticket information, visit www.milb.com/brooklyn.
