Now out of last place in the National League East by a half-game, the New York Mets are hoping to bolster their pitching staff with one of the team’s top prospects.
The Mets called up right-hander Jonah Tong from Triple-A Syracuse on Friday. To clear a spot for him, veteran reliever Craig Kimbrel was designated for assignment, the team announced.
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Tong, 22, was ranked as the Mets’ top pitching prospect by MLB.com, Baseball America and The Athletic. In nine Triple-A starts this season, he compiled a 5.68 ERA with 55 strikeouts and 24 walks in 38 innings. Tong was the Mets’ 2022 seventh-round draft pick out of Bill Crothers Secondary School in Ontario, Canada.
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The Mets did not announce what Tong’s role would be upon joining the major-league roster. But his last start for Syracuse was on May 14 and he was scratched from his scheduled start on Wednesday.
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That gives Tong seven days’ rest and presumably makes him available to pitch against the Marlins on Friday. Tobias Myers is slated to start for the Mets, but hasn’t thrown more than three innings in 16 appearances this season.
This will be Tong’s second major-league stint with the Mets. Last year, he made five starts from late August through the end of the season and collected a 7.71 ERA with 22 strikeouts and 24 hits allowed in 18 2/3 innings. Prior to his call-up, he led the minor leagues with 179 strikeouts in 22 starts across Double- and Triple-A.
Tong is the latest top prospect that the Mets have called up, joining outfielders Carson Benge, Nick Morabito and A.J. Ewing.
Kimbrel, 37, had a 6.00 ERA in 14 appearances for the Mets this season. He joined the team in early April after originally signing a minor-league deal in spring training.
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Once one of MLB’s most formidable closers, Kimbrel has not recorded a save since the 2024 season with the Baltimore Orioles. He ranks fifth in MLB history with 440 saves. However, the Mets did not sign him to be their closer, having signed Devin Williams for that role.
