The Mets’ starting rotation is beginning to come into focus, and that’s where Tylor Megill’s situation gets tricky.
What once looked like a straightforward question about depth is now turning into a real crossroads for the right-hander, who missed all of 2026 after a sprained right elbow during the 2025 season led to Tommy John surgery. At 31, Megill is entering a year that could shape how the Mets view him going forward, even if he isn’t drawing nearly as much attention as some of the bigger offseason priorities.
Megill has given the Mets flashes since arriving in the big leagues in 2021. The best-known example came on April 29, 2022, when he threw the first five innings of the club’s combined no-hitter against the Philadelphia Phillies. But the combination of injuries and inconsistency has made his path far less secure now.
That’s especially true because the Mets appear to have three pitchers lined up ahead of him. Nolan McLean, Christian Scott and Zach Thornton all look like near-locks for 2027.
McLean followed up his late-season rookie cameo from 2025 with a strong year, going 12-10 with a 3.16 ERA, 194 strikeouts and a 1.17 WHIP across 31 starts and 179.2 innings. He is also a finalist for the NL Rookie of the Year Award.
Scott, who also came back from Tommy John surgery, made 23 starts and finished 4-5 with a 3.85 ERA, 134 strikeouts and a 1.27 WHIP in 110 innings.
Thornton emerged as another bright spot. The left-hander went 5-6 in 15 starts with a 3.42 ERA, 63 strikeouts and a 1.14 WHIP over 84.1 innings, turning in a rookie season that stood out after he had flown under the radar in the organization.
Neither manager Andy Green nor president of baseball operations David Stearns has confirmed anything yet, but all three appear to have rotation spots waiting for them.
The Mets also have Sean Manaea as a possible back-end option, though that comes with plenty of uncertainty. He is owed $25 million next season, and after two underwhelming years, finding a trade partner could be difficult.
And the front office may not be done adding. Tarik Skubal is an obvious name to watch, while Joe Ryan of the Minnesota Twins remains a possibility in trade discussions. However it shakes out, New York is expected to be in the market for pitching.
That leaves Megill in a precarious spot. Between the elbow surgery, the inconsistency and the way the rotation is already taking shape, his route to a job looks crowded. He has made 20 starts or more only once in five major league seasons, and the margin for error is shrinking fast.
In Other News...
Luis Torrens Just Became More Important To The Mets Than Ever
Luis Torrens has quietly turned into one of the Mets most important depth pieces, and his role only grew after Francisco Alvarezs injury pushed him into the starting job. Torrens started 74 games behind the plate, showed the kind of defensive presence that has long made him valuable, and was rewarded with a Gold Glove nomination for the second straight year in 2026. For a club that has spent plenty of time trying to stabilize the catching position, that kind of steadiness matters.
The Mets also got more than just glove work from Torrens once he took on a heavier workload. His defense remained elite, and he gave the offense a lift in August, a useful development for a catcher whose main calling card has typically been run prevention. Now locked in on a two-year extension through 2028, Torrens looks like more than a temporary fix, and the bigger question for the Mets is how much his expanded role changes their plans behind the plate going forward. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Just Got Hit With A Hindsight Critique Fans Should Question
Jon Heyman took aim at the Mets offseason judgment, pointing to the decision not to sign pitcher Nick Martinez as another move that can be second-guessed in light of how well Martinez has performed with the Tampa Bay Rays this season. It is the kind of critique that lands easily when a player is thriving elsewhere, especially for a Mets club that has spent plenty of time under a microscope for how it has handled pitching.
But the case is not as clean as the hindsight version makes it sound. Martinez was older, and his track record before this stretch did not make him an obvious must-sign last winter, which is why labeling the Mets choice a miss feels too tidy. He could still become a fit for New York down the road, including as a possible option for 2027, but the larger point is that not every offseason decision becomes a mistake just because the outcome looks better in reverse. [Read more 🡒]
Mets Face One Crucial Pitching Decision If Skubal Signs Elsewhere
The Mets are heading into the winter with starting pitching squarely on the shopping list, and Tarik Skubal sits at the top of it. A two-time Cy Young Award winner would obviously change the conversation in Queens, but the market rarely cooperates that neatly, which is why the club is already being linked to other arms who could help stabilize the rotation if the big swing does not land.
Michael King and Clay Holmes have both surfaced as possible fallback options, giving the Mets a couple of different ways to address the staff without waiting on one outcome. There is also a trade idea involving Drew Rasmussen, though it is viewed as the wrong kind of gamble, which leaves the front office with a familiar winter task: decide whether to chase the premier prize or settle for a lesser fit before the market thins out. [Read more 🡒]