Going into the 2023 season, the Mets appeared to have plenty of pitching depth. For several reasons, that pitching depth did not hold up, leading the Mets to spend the second half of their season trying out all of their options rather than fighting for a postseason birth. Joey Lucchesi, who was largely a forgotten option after missing all of 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, has stepped up whenever his number has been called this season.

In his first start since August 18, Lucchesi threw seven-plus impressive innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Citi Field on Wednesday night. The Mets’ left-hander kept the Diamondbacks’ heavily right-handed lineup guessing all night by mixing his pitches and pitching to contact. Despite striking out just two batters on the night, he held the Diamondbacks to just five hits, three walks and one unearned run while leading the Mets to a 7-1 win.

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Lucchesi pitched into the eighth inning for the first time in his MLB career. After a leadoff walk to start the eighth, he got what looked like a sure double-play ball, but a huge hop sent the ball past Francisco Lindor for an error and ended the Mets’ starter’s night. Lucchesi was well on his way to the best start of his MLB career, but he had to settle for his second outing of seven innings and no earned runs this season, matching his first start of the year in San Francisco on April 21.

“Joey Fuego looked good today,” Mark Vientos said following the Mets’ win. “He’s a dog.”

It has been a strange first year back from Tommy John surgery for Lucchesi. He has pitched well at the MLB level, pitching to a 2.83 ERA in his seven starts, but he has not had the same success in the offense-heavy Triple-A International League. His ERA in Triple-A is 4.74, and he feels the automated ball and strike calling system contributes to that discrepancy.

“They have an ABS system and if I’m being honest, no one really likes it,” Lucchesi said after his start on Wednesday. “They just changed it for the second time. I don’t think it’s very realistic to be up here. I like this type of baseball, but that type of baseball is a little different with the zone.”

While the Mets cannot completely ignore what he has done in Triple-A when deciding how they value Lucchesi this offseason, they can certainly keep in mind that he has flourished in his limited major-league opportunities. It remains to be seen if Lucchesi will make another start for the Mets, but after his second straight scoreless start, albeit nearly a month after the first one, he most likely deserves a chance to make another start in the majors.

“I didn’t play all last year, so I had to show them I still had that fight in me,” Lucchesi said. “I believe I have a lot of life left in my body and a lot of fight, so hopefully, they recognize that and see it, and it works out for me. I obviously want to be up here and pitch with these guys. I can only just pitch to the best of my ability and let them decide.”