3 NY Mets players taking full advantage of their extra playing time in April

Things don't always go as planned, and in some cases, that's a good thing. In true "next man up" mentality, these New York Mets were called to duty in the absence of their peers, and their performances have more than sufficed, some enough to earn them a permanent role they might not have seen otherwise.

1) Tylor Megill

Due to the injuries of Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas, Megill was met with another chance to crack the Mets' rotation, something he has been attempting since his rookie season in 2021. It looks like this time, Megill might finally be finding that success.

Through five starts, he holds a 1.09 ERA, allowing just three earned runs across 24.2 innings. In his most recent start against the Phillies, he struck out a career-high 10 batters and allowed just one hit in a scoreless 5.1 inning performance. His fate lay in the four walks he allowed, upping his pitch count to 92 without getting through the sixth inning, but regardless, it was another successful quality start for Megill.

Much of Megill's success can be attributed to the disposal of his cutter. The cutter was the pitch that gave him the most trouble in 2024, with a batting-average-against of .326 and a slugging-percentage-against of .565. Now, he's gotten rid of that pitch completely. He has also gotten rid of his split finger and his sweeper, bringing his pitch repertoire down to five from the eight he was throwing last year.

Simplifying his pitch arsenal allows Megill to focus on the pitches that bring him success. He's added 7.8 inches of vertical movement to his slider from 2024, and it's resulted in a whiff rate of 36.7 percent. Likewise, he has added 5.3 inches of horizontal movement to his changeup and 2.6 inches of horizontal movement to his curveball, resulting in whiff rates of 62.5 percent and 40 percent, respectively.

If the significant movement Megill has added to his pitches continues to work in his favor, he can very easily run away with the starting role with the Mets he has been working towards for years.