A little over a month later appointing James Kang as new director of international scoutingTHE New York Mets have decided who will work most closely with him.

Friday, Will Sammon of The Athletic reported that the Mets are hiring Laiky Uribe as assistant director of international scouting. Uribe spent the last eight years with the Los Angeles Dodgers, serving in various scouting positions.

A Bronx native, Uribe played catcher for Odessa College and Galveston College in the early 2010s before launching his professional career as a volunteer assistant in the international scouting department of the St. Louis Cardinals in August 2015 He expressed his excitement about returning home to the Big Apple in a. post to Twitter/X:

Before joining the Cleveland Guardians as a senior player acquisition scout in December, Kang and Uribe overlapped in the Dodgers organization for four years, both serving as international screeners the past three years.

During this period, the Dodgers signed many talented international prospects, including outfielder Josue De Paula (number 2 overall). Dodgers farm system), shortstop Joendry Vargas (No. 7) and outfielder Eduardo Quintero (No. 9). Currently, Los Angeles has the fifth-best farm system in baseball, according to MLB Pipelinewhile the Mets rank 13th.

Hiring former Dodgers employees has become a trend for the Mets since Steve Cohen purchased the team in the fall of 2020. Prior to Cohen’s first season as owner in 2021, the Mets hired Ben Zauzmer of the Dodgers to lead their analytics department, promoting him to owner. assistant general manager ahead of the 2022 season.

Four years ago, Cohen it was said that he modeled his organization as the East Coast version of the now World Series champion Dodgers. After a poor start to the 2024 season, the Mets far exceeded their low expectations and managed to reach the NLCS, pushing Los Angeles to six games before ultimately falling short.

New York has the financial flexibility to compete with any team, including the big-spending Dodgers, who signed more than $1 billion in free agents last winter. However, what has set Los Angeles apart in recent years is their consistent ability to develop quality prospects, giving them an edge in roster construction and blockbuster trade negotiations.

By continuing to recruit key former Dodgers scouts, the Mets appear to be striving to replicate their NL rival’s success in identifying and attracting future stars from international free agency.