New York Mets’ Pitching Prospect Franklyn Kilome Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

The New York Mets have a new crop of talented young pitchers in the upper levels of their farm system, but that depth took a hit this weekend. Starting pitcher Franklyn Kilome, who the Mets acquired from the Philadelphia Phillies in the Asdrubal Cabrera trade this past July, underwent Tommy John surgery last Wednesday, MetsBlog.com reports. Kilome, who went 0-3 with a 4.07 ERA in seven starts and 42 strikeouts in 38 innings for AA Binghamton after the Mets acquired him, is currently rated as the organization’s fifth best prospect according to MLB.com.

This is a tough break for Kilome, who was poised to start 2019 at AAA Syracuse and potentially make his big league debut later in the season. Kilome will now miss the full year, pushing back his development by a full season. This is also the second consecutive year that a top Mets’ pitching prospect lost a year to Tommy John surgery. Lefty Thomas Szapucki, who had made a tremendous impression with the Columbia Fireflies in 2017, underwent the procedure in July of that year and missed all of the 2018 campaign.