FISHKILL — Sammy Stafura sat in the visiting dugout Thursday at Heritage Financial Park fielding questions like he easily handles grounders.
They concerned everything from his injuries this season (partially torn UCL and pulled hamstring), the "grind "of adjusting to playing six times a week ("It takes a toll on the body and mental side"), to getting a few days at home and enjoying one of his favorite dishes from his mom (chicken parm sliders with mushroom soup — Note: He often picks the mushrooms for this).
Stafura, who's primarily a shortstop, although he has played some second and also DH'd this season, hit .516, drove in 40 runs and stole 29 bases in leading Walter Panas to the 2023 Section 1 Class B title and to the B state championship game
before being named Gatorade New York Player of the Year and being drafted in MLB's second round by the Cincinnati Reds.
But three years in baseball can bring myriad changes.
Since the draft, Stafura has worn the uniform of Cincy's Arizona Complex League rookie squad and its Single A Daytona Tortugas, the Pittsburgh Pirates' Single A Bradenton Marauders and, until a few weeks ago, the Pirates' High A Greensboro Grasshoppers.
Thursday, hours before the first pitch was thrown by the host Hudson Valley Renegades, Stafura wore a blue and orange logoed New York Mets T-shirt and shorts.
But his hat revealed the exact location of his current home, sporting no words or letters but an embroidered bridge — the Brooklyn Bridge
Stafura has been a member of the New York Mets High A Brooklyn Cyclones since the Pirates swapped him Aug. 3 for Mets righty reliever Luke Weaver and cash.
Although only 21 and still in A ball, Stafura's chances of cracking the Big League Mets — his forever favorite team — as early as possibly next year — appear high.
Stafura went to the Mets after an absolutely torrid 45-game stretch this summer in which he clubbed 17 home runs (14 in July) and swiped 15 bases. He also hit .301 for Greensboro.
He has cooled off considerably since joining Brooklyn (.227 average, 11 runs scored, 2 RBI and 1 stolen base through Aug. 26). Still, Stafura, who acknowledged there's more media pressure to perform in New York, is hitting .265 overall on the season with 20 homers, 56 RBI and 21 stolen bases in 287 at-bats. And his 16-game sample size in Brooklyn in so small Cyclones manager Eduardo Nunez isn't placing much weight on those numbers.
Nunez likes what he sees of Stafura both on and off the field and believes his stay in the minors will be short.
"I think he's a great guy and a guy who fits well into our system. He's always accepting of feedback and he works hard. I'm happy to have him," Nunez said.
But Nunez will be happier still to see Stafura advance.
"He's a solid, elite defender. He has hit and hit for power," he said, chalking up Stafura's slow offensive start with Brooklyn to some "holes" in his swing, which Nunez views as both linked to his youth and easily correctable.
Brooklyn has little more than a week left to its season. Stafura could be sent to Double A Binghamton after that or even Arizona fall ball, but it seems likely he'll be instructed just to go home to train with the goal of staying healthy.
Stafura speculated he might start next season in Binghamton, but Nunez figures Queens could quickly follow.
"Hopefully, next year, at some point, he'll make his MLB debut," he said.
How he got here
Stafura, who for Brooklyn's okay to sleep at home in Cortlandt during its five games this week at Hudson Valley, points to support from friends and family as key to his rise in his game, noting he leans on his "tight circle" when he needs help.
The circle includes older brother, Steven, and younger brother, Niko, who, while giving up playing baseball when they were about 12, saw Sammy's potential and both worked with and encouraged him.
Stafura also played high-level summer league baseball during high school, first on Long Island and then with the North Carolina-based Dirtbags.
So, he's no stranger to packing his bags to play.
But he does allow switching pro teams "has definitely been a bit overwhelming" with the travel and new environments.
Still, joining the Mets organization was "definitely a dream," with his phone "blowing up" with messages. Despite injuries that cost him more than three months of play this summer, he said, on balance, "This whole year has been awesome."
"I'm just trying to have fun and play the game I love. I'm just enjoying the ride," Stafura said.
He noted while he has been "pretty good overall," he's working to become more consistent at the plate.
His off-season plans include working in the Westchester area with his personal trainer, Jake Oliger, getting better physically, including simply getting stronger. After losing nearly three months to the torn UCL, which did not require surgery, he returned for 10 games, only to pull a hamstring and go back on the IL.
Among his chief goals next year is to avoid injuries and play 150 games.
Without going into specifics, he said both training and philosophies differed with the three pro organizations for which he has played.
"It's a learning process. I'm happy to be here," he said, noting he likes how the Mets handle things.
"From the mental side, this year has been the best," Stafura said, noting instead of focusing on hits and batting average, his approach at the plate has been to "win every at-bat" and remain "locked in."
"It's a long season of ups and downs. I try to stay neutral," he said.
Stafura is clearly trying to not look too far ahead but lets his mind wander just a bit to what may be coming.
Pointing to the success he had earlier this summer, he said, "The whole June and July are really why I play baseball. Those highs were the best feeling on the planet earth — just finding success. I'm sure at the MLB level, success will (feel) even better than that. I'm so anxious to get going."
Nancy Haggerty covers sports for The Journal News/lohud.
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Now in NY Mets organization, Sammy Stafura seems poised for next step
