Inside the New York Mets’ pitching lab in October, the high-speed cameras and sensors hooked up to prospect Mike Vasil helped inform staffers that the right-hander would benefit from a mechanical change.
Essentially, Vasil needed to stay on his back side longer during the early stage of his stride so that he didn’t go down the mound too quickly within his delivery. From there, Mets coaches designed throwing drills with weighted balls and ultimately created a program to help him build up throwing while also implementing the new mechanics.Vasil hopes the adjustment leads to more consistent velocity at maybe a tick or two higher. In the meantime, Vasil has also worked on a bigger slider to pair with a harder one, which may evolve into a cutter that helps him perform better against right-handed batters.
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Even subtle tweaks like Vasil’s or a new pitch here or there make the Mets’ new lab in Port St. Lucie, Fla., worth the investment. New York needs to do a better job of developing pitchers. And Vasil profiles as one of a handful of homegrown hurlers who might debut with the big-league club at some point in 2024.
Vasil, 23, and Christian Scott, 25, whom various publications tab as the Mets’ best pitching prospect, are among the minor-league players who have been invited to major-league spring training, The Athletic has learned. Like Vasil, Scott is another right-hander who has generated buzz as a potential call-up this season. While neither player will break camp with the Mets — nor will any of the team’s top prospects, for that matter — the invitations bode well for how the organization views them.
Ideally, the Mets want an internal option or two to step up before the organization makes plans for the 2025 rotation. Though both could use time in Triple A and may not earn promotions until the second half of the season, if at all, Scott and Vasil stand out as perhaps the pitching prospects closest to being ready.
Vasil logged 16 starts in Triple A but struggled with a 5.30 ERA, failing to replicate the success he had in Double A (3.71 ERA in 10 starts), where an evaluator who saw him there described him as a “bulldog with great stuff.”
Despite not having pitched yet in Triple A, Scott might beat the Mets’ other pitching prospects to the majors — rival evaluators easily identified him as the organization’s top pitching prospect. In 12 starts with Double-A Binghamton (62 innings), Scott had a 2.47 ERA with 77 strikeouts and just eight walks. Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns recently spoke highly of Scott, but the former reliever’s volume may linger as a concern.
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A pitcher can always leapfrog another in a given year due to improvement or a tweak in repertoire or mechanics, and the presence of the pitching lab only further adds to that dynamic. Other minor-league starters who may get the chance to debut in 2024 include Dominic Hamel, Justin Jarvis and Victor Castaneda, who signed with the Mets as a minor-league free agent after spending years with the Milwaukee Brewers, Stearns’ old organization. Others to keep in mind who don’t have as much experience in the upper levels include Blade Tidwell, Joander Suarez and Tyler Stuart.
The Mets also need to do a better job of developing relievers. Like the rotation, the Mets’ bullpen has operated in a state of change year after year in part because of a lack of reliable, homegrown contributors. There are a few candidates who can make a push for a debut in the Mets’ bullpen later in 2024.
Again, this is where a pitching lab can only help. For example, reliever Paul Gervase experienced the pitching lab in late September, quickly after Binghamton’s season ended. Gervase, who is working on his command and improving his splitter, had a 2.05 ERA in 38 games across High A and Double A with 96 strikeouts in 57 innings.
Lefty Nate Lavender, Eric Orze and Cam Robinson, who also signed with the Mets after time in the Brewers’ organization, stand out as a few other possible callups in 2024. Another name to watch: Trey Mcloughlin, who reached Double A and impressed a couple of scouts with his ability to throw three pitches for strikes on both sides of the plate in the Arizona Fall League.
The list of position player prospects who may debut in 2024 should look familiar because they are also the team’s top minor leaguers: Jett Williams, Drew Gilbert and Luisangel Acuña. None of the three players has appeared in a game above Double A. But plenty can happen over the next handful of months. Gilbert will start in Triple-A Syracuse and should be thought of when considering the Mets’ depth in the outfield for the second half of 2024. Acuña is on the 40-man roster and logged 569 plate appearances in Double A last season.
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As a first-round pick in 2022, Williams doesn’t have the same amount of experience in Double A as Acuña and Gilbert; he has played just six games at the level. But don’t count him out for anything. Known for his elite discipline and contact, Williams has worked this offseason on improving his hard-hit rate. His average exit velocity sat at 88.5 mph, according to Baseball America, but this winter he steadily saw readings of 95 mph while working with personal instructor Aldrey Rincone.
Other minor-leaguers who aren’t necessarily top prospects yet may be in the lineup for Triple-A Syracuse either at the start of the season or shortly thereafter include outfielders Rowdey Jordan, Brandon McIlwain and Matt Rudick, and infielders Jeremiah Jackson and Luke Ritter. All of those players have yet to appear in the majors.
Depending on how the season plays out, it may be important for the Mets to see what they have in some of their younger players. At the major-league level, that could mean extended time for Brett Baty and Mark Vientos. In the minors, that could lead to eventual looks at some players such as Scott, Gervase, Gilbert and more.
(Photo of Mike Vasil from 2022: Mark J. Rebilas / USA Today)
Will Sammon is a staff writer for The Athletic, covering the New York Mets and Major League Baseball. A native of Queens, New York, Will previously covered the Milwaukee Brewers and Florida Gators football for The Athletic, starting in 2018. Before that, he covered Mississippi State for The Clarion-Ledger, Mississippi’s largest newspaper. Follow Will on Twitter @WillSammon
