NY Mets: Where does Tylor Megill fit in the team’s future plans?

One of the big surprises in the New York Mets rotation in the 2021 season was the strong debut of rookie pitcher Tylor Megill. While the Mets were projected to have one of the strongest rotations in the league coming into the season, they have been hit hard by injures throughout the year.

Both Noah Syndergaard and Carlos Carrasco have yet to appear for the team in 2021 as they two are still recovering from injuries, with them not expected back until August/September.

Additionally, David Peterson and Joey Lucchesi are each out of action on the IL, with Peterson out for several weeks with an oblique strain and Lucchesi out for the year after undergoing Tommy John Surgery. The Mets have used a few different pitchers to plug in the constant holes in the rotation this year, and out of all of them, Tylor Megill has been by far the most impressive.

This Mets starting pitcher has played admirably over the first few starts of his rookie year, but how does he fit into New York’s future plans?

Coming into the year as the team’s no. 21 ranked prospect, Megill was relatively unknown when he was called up to the big leagues, however, he has made the most of his opportunity.

Thus far in his rookie campaign, the 25-year-old right-hander has logged a 2.63 ERA through 24.0 innings across 5 starts, striking out 28 batters with only 9 walks. While it is only 5 starts, Megill has had a very impressive audition to be a part of the Mets’ rotation at least until the end of the 2021 season, and possibly beyond.

Currently, Jacob deGrom is on the IL for at least a week with a forearm injury, while Peterson, Carrasco, and Syndergaard aren’t expected to rejoin the club until August at the earliest, if at all, meaning there will be several vacancies for Megill to fill for the time being.

In the event some or all of them return to the major leagues by the end of the year, that may not necessarily oust Megill from the rotation. Peterson for example, has an ERA was in the mid 5.00s at the time of his injury, so he may be placed in the bullpen in favor of Megill in the rotation, as he posted the better numbers.

As for Syndergaard or Carrasco, even if they return and pitch well, it may be wise for the Mets to continue running a 6-man rotation to keep all of their starters well-rested as we near the postseason, so Megill would still have a spot in that scenario.

Beyond 2021, the Mets will have many key players hitting free agency, namely starting pitchers Marcus Stroman and Noah Syndergaard.

Stroman will likely command a large contract this off-season based on the year he has had, while Syndergaard’s asking price is unknown as he is coming off an injury and hasn’t pitched a game in nearly 2 years.

The Mets may end up letting one or both of them walk if they ask more money than the team feels they are worth and having Megill under team control for years to come only works in their favor.

While Tylor Megill’s immediate future with the team is highly dependent on how quickly the currently injured pitchers return, if he continues to consistently perform at his current level, he may end up being a fixture in the Mets rotation going forwards.

He has produced excellent numbers over his rookie years thus far, and if Stroman and or Syndergaard leave New York this offseason, he may be one of the Mets’ best options to replace them heading into 2022 and beyond.

Want your voice heard? Join the Rising Apple team!

Write for us!

For now, we can only hope he continues to perform well on the mound, and when the season is over, hopefully, the Mets will have another great arm for Luis Rojas to hand the ball to every fifth day.