Luisangel Acuna is on the board as a New York Mets farmhand.
The prized shortstop prospect picked up his first hit Wednesday, days after he came over from the Texas Rangers Sunday in the Max Scherzer trade.
Batting in the leadoff spot, Acuna — who is the younger brother of Atlanta Braves star Ronald Acuna Jr. — singled to right-center in the bottom of the fourth inning for the Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies, who were hosting the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
Acuna reached base twice, also drawing a walk, during Binghamton’s 3-1 loss at Mirabito Stadium.
The Mets have great expectations for Acuna, who is the club’s No. 2 prospect and No. 44 overall, according to MLB Pipeline.
General manager Billy Eppler is high on Acuna, saying Sunday the 21-year-old is “close to the big leagues.”
“This is talent that you can’t access,’’ Eppler said of Acuna, who has received rave reviews within the Mets organization for his athleticism.
“We’re excited to get a prospect of this caliber into the system,’’ Eppler said.
Eppler was a busy man ahead of Tuesday’s MLB trade deadline.
In addition to trading Scherzer, the Mets dumped co-ace Justin Verlander, reliever David Robertson and outfielders Mark Canha and Tommy Pham.
The moves helped Eppler pare down the Mets’ record-setting payroll while restocking the farm system.
However, the wheeling and dealing means the Mets aren’t expected to be legitimate title contenders in 2024.
Consider what owner Steve Cohen said Wednesday in Kansas City: “I think the expectations were really high this year and my guess is next year will be a lot lower. But I can’t speak to what is going to happen in the offseason.
“There might be opportunities — I am opportunistic,” Cohen continued. “I don’t want to roll a team out there we are going to be embarrassed by.
“But we also know that spending a fortune … doesn’t guarantee you a trip to the playoffs.”
That seems to be in line with what Eppler told Scherzer before Sunday’s trade.
The Athletic reports the three-time Cy Young Award winner met with the GM before being shipped to Texas, which makes sense since Scherzer had a no-trade clause.
“I was like, ‘OK, are we reloading for 2024?’ He goes, ‘No, we’re not. Basically our vision now is for 2025-2026, ‘25 at the earliest, more like ‘26. We’re going to be making trades around that.’”
By that time, it’s possible Acuna is in the Mets’ starting lineup.
At least that’s what Eppler and Cohen are banking on as the club retools for the future.