Megill Strikes Out 10, Awaits Fate
In what may turn out to be Tylor Megill‘s last big-league start for a while, he struck out 10 to help the Mets to a 5-1 victory Wednesday in Boston.
He was as good as ever for four scoreless frames, highlighted by striking out the heart of the Red Sox order (Alex Bregman, Wilyer Abreu and Kristian Campbell) in the fourth inning.
The fifth inning was a bumpy ride, with a couple of infield singles, a hit batter, a wild pitch, one earned run, and a walk to Rafael Devers that ended his night at 85 pitches. He left with two outs and the bases loaded and Huascar Brazobán struck out Bregman to retire the side.
In a way the start mirrored Megill’s season. In his first five starts, he gave up a total of three earned runs and his ERA was 1.09 after striking out 10 Phillies on April 21. But he slumped after that, giving up four earned runs in each of his three previous starts coming into Wednesday. He lasted only 2.2 innings against the Yankees last Friday, his shortest outing of the year.
All told, he’s 3-4 in 10 starts with a 3.56 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, and 66 strikeouts in 48 innings.
The reason Megill, 29, may find himself in the bullpen or in the minor leagues soon is that Paul Blackburn looks ready to go. He tossed seven scoreless innings of one-hit ball in Syracuse on Wednesday, threw 87 pitches and appears poised to come off the injured list and return to New York.
“I think we got a decision there after that,” manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters prior to Blackburn’s start when asked what would happen to the roster next.
Blackburn is out of options so the Mets must send a pitcher down to make room for him. Brazobán and Max Kranick have options but seem to have solidified their bullpen roles. Megill has an option so the Mets could send him down, keep him stretched out as a starter, then bring him up when the need for a sixth starter arises.
Another choice is to bring up Blackburn and put him in the bullpen and still another way to go is the Mets could try to drop a reliever through waivers.
Mendoza has a lot to think about. Megill did his job by making the call a little tougher on Wednesday.
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