2022 Mets Draft profile: Dylan Ross

Dylan Ross comes from an athletic family. His grandfather, John Small, played football for the Atlanta Falcons from 1970-1972 and the Detroit Lions in 1973 and 1974. His uncle, Matt Childers, was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1997 and played professionally for roughly ten years in the minor leagues, major leagues, and Japan. His uncle, Jason Childers, played professionally for roughly ten years in the minor leagues, major leagues, and Mexico. An older cousin, Terry Childers, played for the University of Georgia in the early 1990s and played for the Capital City Bombers and Pittsfield Mets in 1993. Another cousin, Will Childers, is currently a teammate of his at Georgia, while his brother, Dalton, plays for the University of Tampa.

Dylan began his high school career at Statesboro High School in Statesboro, Georgia, but transferred to the Georgia Premier Academy for his junior and senior seasons. He posted a 4.52 ERA in 31 innings in his senior year, striking out 42, and went undrafted in the 2019 MLB. Prior to beginning his college career at Eastern Kentucky University, he appeared in two games for the Leesburgh Lightning of the Florida Collegiate Summer League. He barely pitched in his freshman year, as the NCAA cancelled the 2020 season in mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic but was able to throw a handful of supplemental innings with the Seminole County Snappers that summer, another Florida Collegiate Summer League team. He transferred to Northwest Florida State College in 2021, a NJCAA school in Niceville, Florida, and served as their ace, posting a 3.88 ERA 60.1 innings with 55 hits allowed, 28 walks, and 77 strikeouts. He transferred once again for the 2022 season, this time to the University of Georgia. His season began favorably enough, as he allowed one run over five hits against the University of Albany in his first start, scattering 4 hits, walking 2, and striking out 6, but things took a decidedly worse turn in his second start, against Wofford University. After tossing just a single inning, he left the game with pain in his arm. The undisclosed arm injury cost him the entire season, as he underwent season-ending surgery; ironically, his cousin and teammate, Will, also missed the season due to an arm injury.

The 6’5”, 250-pound Ross has a durable workhorse build. He throws from a high-three-quarters arm slot with minimal effort. Prior to his injury, the right-hander had electric stuff, but struggled to command it. How impressive it looks once he returns to the mound remains to be seen, due to the unknown nature of his injury and what surgery he underwent.

His fastball sat in the mid-90s, topping out at 97, 98 MPH with arm-side life. He complemented it with a slider that sat in the mid-to-high-80s that tunneled with his fastball well. When he had a good feel for the pitch, it featured tight break, but when he didn’t, it lost much of its vertical break and was more of a flat cutter. He occasionally also mixed in a high-80s changeup, but the pitch was firm and only thrown sparingly.