Mets' Boyd garnering attention

Sixth-rounders don't traditionally get a ton of publicity coming out of the Draft.

They're at the precipice where teams pick players they think have promise, but aren't sure whether they'll show anything once exposed to pro ball.

Jayce Boyd is one such pick from last year's Draft who, so far, is quickly and quite visibly leaving his mark on the Mets system.

The Florida State University product had his first four-hit game as a pro Thursday. Boyd went a perfect 4-for-4 with a homer, a triple, three RBIs and two runs to push Class A Savannah past Greenville, 9-4.

"I guess you can say that's one [of my better games] numbers-wise," he said. "I feel like I've swung the bat pretty good all year, and today I got in good positions to hit, found the holes when I needed to."

In more than a year since he signed with the Mets after they took him in the sixth round of the 2012 Draft, Boyd has seen both sides of the coin as far as success in the Minor Leagues is concerned.

In his debut last year with Class A Short-Season Brooklyn, the 22-year-old hit a modest .239/.320/.368 with five homers and 19 RBIs in 54 games.

This year, though, after getting a crack at his first full Spring Training as a pro and moving onto his first full-season club, he's been a force at the plate.

Through 62 games, Boyd is batting .346/.420/.471 with four homers and 43 RBIs for the Sand Gnats. In addition to posting the South Atlantic League's best batting average, he has the league's second-best OBP thanks to plate discipline that has seen him walk almost as many times (30) as he's struck out (32).

"I feel pretty comfortable at the plate, but you always go through ups and downs, no matter what. It's about minimizing the downs and maximizing the ups, and I've been trying to do that all season. Tonight I had a good night, and hopefully I'll keep it going from there," he said. "I just want to keep as even-keeled as possible. You try not to get too low when things are going bad and not get too high when things are going great. Stay there in the middle with what you can control, and good things usually happen when you have that plan and that process."

He did admit, though, to being pleased with where he must stand in the New York organization after his hot start.

"I played in Brooklyn last year obviously, but coming in, starting fresh, it's really exciting to get out here and play as well as I have," he said. "I'm hoping to just keep putting on the pressure, let our organization know I'm here to play."

Eudy Pina went 2-for-3 with a walk, a double and four runs scored for Savannah out of the leadoff spot Thursday. Maikis De La Cruz added three RBIs.

Jake Kuebler (2-2) scattered two hits, did not issue any walks and struck out two over five scoreless innings to pick up the win.