In a post to Twitter yesterday, Al Goetz, the agent for Mets prospect  Zack Wheeler, believes Wheeler is ready to be promoted to the Major Leagues.

If the Mets have 5 starters better than what I saw from @Wheelerpro45 yesterday, they will win the East #bigleagueready—
Al Goetz (@AlGoetz1) January 25, 2013

Last week on WFAN, Sandy Alderson said while it’s unlikely, it’s possible Wheeler could make the team out of camp if they didn’t acquire a starting pitcher to replace R.A. Dickey – the Mets reportedly agreed to sign RHP Shaun Marcum to a one-year deal on Thursday.

Wheeler went a combined 12-8 with a 3.26 ERA in 25 starts between Double-A and Triple-A in 2012, having allowed 59 walks with 148 strikeouts in 149 innings.

Michael Baron, Contributor

He’s close, but I don’t expect to see Wheeler in Flushing until around mid-season. And, now that the Mets have brought Shaun Marcum onboard, there’s now even less of a chance Wheeler makes the club out of camp. That’s a good thing; Wheeler saw limited duty at Triple-A last year and could use a little work to refine his command, it will likely allow him to work with Travis d’Arnaud before both are promoted, and it keeps the organization from exposing Wheeler to fill a short-term need right off the bat.

By the way, Wheeler is on the cover of Baseball America this month: