Tylor Megill
Player Data: Age: 27 (7/28/95), B/T: R/R
Traditional Stats: 15 G, 47.1 IP, 4-2, 5.13 ERA, 1.283 WHIP, 51 SO, 13 BB
Advanced Stats: 76 ERA+, 25.5 K%, 6.5 BB%, 4.31 xERA, 3.77 FIP, 3.35 xFIP 0.0 bWAR, 0.6 fWAR
2022 Salary: $707,500
Grade: C –
2022 Review
With Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom sidelined, Tylor Megill became one of the more unlikely Opening Day starters in New York Mets history. Megill held the Nationals to just three hits over five innings, striking out six in a 5-1 victory to open up the 2022 season.
It was the start of a month of good outings for Megill, in which he pitched to a 1.93 ERA in five starts. During this stretch, Megill started the second-ever no-hitter in Mets franchise history, going the first five innings, before the bullpen finished the rest.
Unfortunately for Megill, a promising start to his sophomore campaign in the big leagues was derailed by injuries. Megill would pitch in only 15 games due to multiple long stints on the IL.
On May 11, the righty was tagged by Washington for eight runs on eight hits in 1.1 innings. The Mets placed Megill on the IL soon after with bicep tendinitis and he returned to make two starts before being shelved again. After pitching to an ERA under 2 in the month of April, Megill’s posted an 11.48 ERA in his next four starts.
Following an outing against the Brewers in June, Megill underwent a scan that revealed a shoulder strain. He would eventually be placed on the 60-day IL and would not return to the mound in a Mets uniform until Sept. 19. With the playoffs in mind, the Mets prepped Megill for a relief role upon his return. Megill made six appearances out of the bullpen at the end of the season, struggling with limited opportunities. Megill would give up four runs on seven hits in those appearances out of the bullpen.
On the face of things, Megill’s statistics were disappointing, as he figured to be a key member of New York’s rotation in 2022. Obviously, dealing with multiple arm injuries and coming out of the bullpen for the first time in his major league career helped inflate those numbers.
Megill turned in a 5.13 ERA and 51 strikeouts over 47.1 innings pitched in 2022. His fastball velocity ranked in the 78th percentile, while the extension on his pitches ranked in the 99th percentile. A problem for Megill was his fastball spin rate, which ranked only in the 33rd percentile of big-league pitchers. Even though Megill had an uptick in velocity, his fastball, which he threw 56.9% of the time in 2022, was not an effective pitch for him last season. Opposing hitters had a .298 batting average against Megill’s fastball in 107 plate appearances.
In total, opposing hitters slashed .253/.303/.418 against him, good for an OPS of .721.
Overall, it was a mostly lost season for Megill, as he spent the majority of the 2022 season either on the IL or appearing in minor league rehab assignments. His season numbers don’t paint the whole picture, as he pitched rather effectively in a starting role, up until he got injured.
2023 Outlook
Megill’s Mets outlook is anything but set in stone for the 2023 season, and his role appears to be one of New York’s biggest question marks heading into spring training. With the Mets adding Justin Verlander, José Quintana and Kodai Senga so far this offseason, there doesn’t appear to be a rotation spot available for Megill or David Peterson. Obviously, that could change if the Mets elect to either trade Carlos Carrasco or utilize a 6-man rotation, but whether Megill will be used out of the bullpen or continue starting remains to be seen.
If last season is any indication, the Mets will likely need Megill to start out of necessity at some point. There is no such thing as too much pitching depth, especially when considering the age(s) of Scherzer, Verlander and Carrasco. Whatever Megill’s role is in 2023, he’ll no doubt be a valuable commodity for the Mets, especially if he can build off last April’s numbers and start for New York in a pinch.
