Vasil is a candidate to replace Tylor Megill (shoulder) in the Mets' rotation, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.
The Mets are scrambling to patch multiple holes on their pitching staff right now, but Megill's spot in the rotation -- which he only held due to Kodai Senga (shoulder) also being sidelined -- is the biggest. The team also plays 13 games in 13 days beginning Friday, so while they won't need to replace Megill until April 9, multiple arms might need to join the rotation during that stretch. Vasil made his first start of the season with Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday, which puts him on turn with Megill, but he allowed four runs in 2.1 innings with a 0:4 K:BB. That poor outing might be enough to discourage the Mets from pushing Vasil to the majors too quickly. Christian Scott, Jose Butto and Joey Lucchesi are other internal rotation options, and the Mets are also said to be interested in signing Julio Teheran, who opted out of his contract with the O's in late March.
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Mets' Mike Vasil: Mets won't rush pitching prospects
Rotowire
Vasil is expected to open the season in the minors rather than compete for a rotation spot in the wake of the Kodai Senga (shoulder) injury, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns doesn't want to rush Vasil, Christian Scott and Dominic Hamel, preferring they receive more seasoning before they're considered for the big-league rotation. Vasil is the closest to the majors of the bunch, having finished 2023 at Triple-A Syracuse with a 4.65 ERA and 138:46 K:BB over 124 innings between there and Double-A Binghamton.
The Mets promoted Vasil from Double-A Binghamton to Triple-A Syracuse on Monday, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.
The 23-year-old Vasil, the top pitching prospect in the Mets' system, is now just one rung away from reaching the big leagues. After a brilliant 2022 campaign split between three levels, Vasil was unfazed by the jump in competition in the Eastern League. Through his 10 starts with Binghamton, Vasil submitted a 3.71 ERA and 0.84 WHIP in 51 innings while striking out 28.9 percent of the batters he faced and walking just 4.1 percent.
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Mets' Mike Vasil: Excellent at Double-A
Rotowire
Vasil has a 2.70 ERA, 0.70 WHIP and a 41:4 K:BB in 30 innings across six starts for Double-A Binghamton.
The 6-foot-5, 225-pound righty has a bulldog mentality, going right after hitters while filling up the zone. He uses his low-to-mid-90s four-seamer up in the zone and mixes in his slider and changeup down in the zone. Vasil is arguably already the Mets' best pitching prospect thanks to this excellent start to his age-23 season.
