The 11 best Mets minor league pitchers I saw this year: 9, Tylor Megill

DISCLAIMER: This is a ranking of the best players that I saw during the 2019 season. I saw a wide cross-section of teams, attending Kingsport Mets, Brooklyn Cyclones, Columbia Fireflies, and Binghamton Rumble Ponies games, but I did not see the GCL Mets, St. Lucie Mets, or Syracuse Mets, nor did I attend every single game of the teams that I did see. As such, this is not a comprehensive Mets prospect list. If a player is not on the list, I either did not see him, or considered the listed players better.

Name: Tylor Megill

Team: Columbia Fireflies/St. Lucie Mets/Binghamton Mets

Position: RHP

Born: 7/28/95 (23)

Height: 6’7”

Weight: 230 lbs.

Bats/Throws: R/R

Acquired: 2018 MLB Draft, 8th Round

2019 Season: 22 G (11 GS), 71.2 IP, 64 H, 34 R, 28 ER (3.52 ERA), 25 BB, 92 K, 1 HBP, 0 BLK, 6 WP, .343 BABIP (Low-A/High-A/Double-A)

Date(s) Seen: June 12 (2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K), June 15 (2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K)

The Man

A graduate of Los Alamitos High School, Tylor Megill went undrafted as a high school senior and attended Loyola Marymount University in 2015. Playing with his older brother, Trevor, he posted a 3.95 ERA in 57.0 innings split between the starting rotation and bullpen, allowing 53 hits, walking 23, and striking out 41. When his brother was drafted by the San Diego Padres and left to become a professional, Tylor left Loyola University as well, transferring to Cypress Junior College. As a member of the Chargers for the 2016 season, he posted a 3.72 ERA in 101.2 innings, allowing 119 hits, walking 29, and striking out 87. Of his 17 appearances, 16 came as a starter. When the season ended, Megill left Cypress, transferring to the University of Arizona for the 2017 season. He started three early season games for the Wildcats, but performed terribly and was sent to the bullpen, where he finished out the season. All in all, he posted a 5.55 ERA in 35.2 innings, allowing 46 hits, walking 17, and striking out 36. Unhappy with his performance- and the fact that he went undrafted in the 2017 MLB Draft because of it- Megill dedicated his summer to improving himself and getting in the best shape of his life. When the 2018 season began, he was roughly 15-pounds lighter, and while the results were not necessarily night-and-day, the improvements were tangible. In 32.2 innings, he posted a 4.68 ERA, allowing 38 hits, walking 14, and striking out 38. The Mets selected him in the 8th round of the 2018 MLB Draft and the right-hander signed, agreeing to a $50,000 signing bonus. He was assigned to the Brooklyn Cyclones to start his professional career and posted a 3.21 ERA over 28.0 innings, allowing 18 hits, walking 14, and striking out 36. After spending a little time in extended spring training, Megill began the 2019 season with the Columbia Fireflies. After about two months, he was promoted to the St. Lucie Mets, and after roughly a month there was promoted to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies. All in all, he posted a 3.52 in 71.2 innings at all three levels combined, allowing 64 hits, walking 25, and striking out 92.

The Pitcher

The 6’6”, 230-pound Megill has an ideal pitcher’s build. He throws from a high three-quarters arm slot with a long, low effort, loose arm action. He throws with a bit of crossfire delivery, which can create a difficult angle for opposing hitters, but also negatively affects his command, frequently missing to the arm-side part of the plate when he releases the ball too early and missing to the glove-side part of the plate when he releases the ball too late.

His fastball sits in the low-90s, peaking at 96 MPH but generally sitting 92-96 MPH. Thanks to his long stride, long arm extension, and crossfire delivery, the pitch features has a high spin rate, giving it late life and heavy tailing action. He works better to the glove side but can throw strikes armside when necessary to the arm side, though his command there is not as precise. His go-to strikeout pitch is a mid-80s slider that, while inconsistent, flashes being an average-to-above-average pitch when it does not flatten out. He also throws a developing changeup that is still fairly firm and rudimentary, as he has only recently had to add it to his repertoire throwing multiple innings as a reliever and when starting.

Looking to 2020

In 2019, Tylor Megill pitched at multiple levels, in multiple roles. He was primarily used a reliever with the Columbia Fireflies and was primarily a starter with the St. Lucie Mets. In roughly the same amount of innings, the results were similar enough to have confidence in Megill continuing to start. Given that he ended the season with the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, I would assume that he starts the 2020 season there, but because he only accumulated 35.2 innings in St. Lucie and was not particularly dominant, I would not be surprised to see him see some time in the Florida State League before being bumped back up to Binghamton.

The List

10: Nick MacDonald

11: Josh Hejka