Jonah Tong made his last start of the season, both in the minors and majors, on Saturday against the Washington Nationals in what has been a year full of trials.

Tong was called up briefly earlier in the season and had his ups and downs in Triple-A Syracuse. Manager Andy Green challenged him leading up to his last start of the season, and Tong responded. A nine-strikeout performance, helped by home runs from A.J. Ewing, and two for Ronny Mauricio, as the Mets beat the Nationals 7-1. The Mets are 74-87 on the season with one more game left in the 2026 season.

Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Tong Answers Green’s Challenge

Before the game, the Mets’ new full-time manager had a few things to say about Tong and his future on the Mets.

“Been forthright with him – what does an organization desperately need to win a World Series? You need guys that are six and seven starters that start the year in Triple-A that can come up and dominate. You don’t win a World Series with only five starters. As an organization, you go out and you try to expand the group of starters you have, which pushes down people that feel like they’ve earned it. In that case, his desires don’t perfectly align with what our desires would be because he wants to be here.

His job is to make it so freaking obvious to us that he deserves to be here that we can’t make those type of decisions when he competes in spring training. He has a full understanding of what that landscape looks like, a full understanding of what makes sense for us, and the resolve to go prove that he belongs here. We’ll get a look at that today, we’ll get a look at that in spring next year. Long-term, huge believer in Jonah. The context doesn’t always align for the player and what they want at that given point in time. He’s going to be huge for us going forward.”

Even in game 161, where the game doesn’t mean much in the big picture, for Tong, though, it means a lot to him. He was strong on Saturday and showed his manager what he can bring in 2027 and beyond. The young Mets right-hander struck out nine Nationals through five innings of work and 19 whiffs. His curveball is his best pitch, topping out at over 80 MPH. Tong allowed three hits and just one walk in the outing. His ERA in the major leagues this season will be 3.82. Since he came back to the rotation, Tong has had three quality starts out of the four he pitched.

Ewing & Mauricio Hit Big Late Home Run

The Mets scuffled on offense against Nationals starter Jake Irvin for six innings. Down 1-0 in the top of the seventh, they broke through. It was a tough series for Ewing, with four strikeouts and an ejection during Friday night’s game. Ewing stepped to the plate with two men on and two outs. He took a 0-2 curveball over the right-center field wall to give the Mets the lead. One batter later, Mauricio, who got the start at second base, crushed a home run from the left side of the plate to extend the Mets lead.

In the top of the ninth, Mauricio homered again, a two-run home run, this time from the right side of the plate, to give the Mets a 7-1 lead. It’s Mauricio’s first career multi-home run game.

Three Hits and Another Great Catch for Carson Benge

Carson Benge keeps making his case for National League Rookie of the Year. On Friday night, he crossed the 20-home run mark for a 20/20 season. On Saturday, Benge did it again at the plate and on defense. Benge had two singles and a double for another three-hit performance. It’s Benge’s 13th three-hit game of the season, and 44th game with multiple hits. However, he made a huge play with his glove in the bottom of the third inning. The Nationals had second and third with nobody out. A ball that seemed like a two-run double into the gap from Abimelec Ortiz and would’ve plated two for Washington. However, Benge dove and made the catch. A runner scored, but Benge saved two from scoring and an extra-base hit from Ortiz.

Player of the Game: Jonah Tong

Tong closed out his season with a nine-strikeout game. Showcasing what he can add to a young Mets rotation.

On Deck

It’s the season finale of the 2026 Mets on Sunday. Sean Manaea will pitch the finale against DJ Herz. The game will start at 1:05pm EDT and will be telecast locally on SNY and broadcast on WHSQ 880AM.