Mere months in the past, an evening like this wouldn’t have appeared attainable for the Mets.
Jonah Tong wasn’t even invited to big-league spring coaching.
The primary time he met supervisor Carlos Mendoza, Tong was serving because the ballboy in a Triple-A sport throughout camp, fulfilling a proper of passage as one of many newbies.
Tong started the common season with Double-A Binghamton, the place, to that time, he had made solely two begins.
He was mild years away from the majors.
However quick ahead to Friday night time, and there Tong was on the Citi Area mound, making his much-hyped MLB debut towards the Miami Marlins.
And Tong demonstrated a lot of the promise that’s turned him into one of many Mets’ most prized prospects.
Tong allowed 4 runs (one earned) over 5 innings within the Mets’ 19-9 victory, putting out six, on an evening the Mets set a franchise file for runs in a house sport. Tong gave up six hits however didn’t difficulty a stroll over 97 pitches and picked up the win.
The 22-year-old right-hander started his debut with 4 scoreless innings, then allowed an RBI single to Eric Wagaman to start out the fifth. The Mets’ protection let Tong down from there, with back-to-back errors by Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso extending the inning and resulting in the three unearned runs.
Nonetheless, Tong ended his inaugural outing on a excessive observe, freezing Liam Hicks with a 3-2 fastball on his closing pitch of the night time.
He exited to an ovation from a sellout crowd of 42,112 that had cheered loudly for Tong all night time, together with as he walked to the bullpen for his pregame warm-up and when he struck out Joey Wiemer within the third inning for his first profession Ok.
Tong deployed a four-pitch arsenal, however he relied essentially the most on his mid-90s fastball, throwing it 61% of the time. He struck 4 batters out wanting with that fastball in a nod to how misleading the pitch will be.
Behind an uncommon, over-the-top supply that strongly resembles that of Tim Lincecum, Tong led the minor leagues in ERA (1.43) and strikeouts (179) over 22 begins at two completely different ranges.
Solely two of these begins got here at Triple-A Syracuse — the place he was promoted earlier this month — however Tong’s overwhelming dominance left the Mets little alternative however to convey him as much as the majors.
“If you had asked me at the beginning of the year if I thought that this was going to happen, I would tell you exactly what I’m going to tell you now: I’m going to be where my feet are,” Tong mentioned Thursday upon arriving at Citi Area. “I think everything else is going to take care of itself.”
Serving to to ease Tong in was a Mets offense that showered him with instant run assist. Earlier than Marlins starter Eury Perez even recorded an out, the Mets led 5-0 behind a two-run house run from Juan Soto and a three-run blast from Brandon Nimmo.
Alonso adopted with a two-run house run towards reliever Tyler Zuber to kick off a seven-run second inning, after which the Mets led, 12-0.
The Mets’ earlier file for runs in a house sport was 17. On Friday, they completed with 18 hits, together with six house runs.
Nimmo added a sixth-inning solo homer off of the right-field foul pole towards reliever Valente Bellozo. Nimmo went 3-for-4 with a stroll and 4 RBI. He now has 22 house runs — two shy of his profession excessive.
The Mets then piled on with a six-run rally within the eighth inning towards Javier Sanoja, a place participant pressed into mop-up pitching obligation. Mark Vientos clubbed a solo house run off of Sanoja, and catcher Luis Torrens added a three-run blast.
Torrens then took the mound for the ninth, however he surrendered 4 runs — together with two homers — in 1/3 of an inning earlier than reliever Ryne Stanek acquired the ultimate two outs.
The win stored the Mets (73-62) 5 video games behind the NL East-leading Philadelphia Phillies, who additionally gained Friday. The Mets now have a five-game lead for the third and closing NL wild card spot over the Cincinnati Reds, who misplaced Friday.
Tong is the second Mets mega-prospect promoted this month within the coronary heart of the playoff push, following 24-year-old right-hander Nolan McLean, who’s 3-0 with a sterling 0.89 ERA by way of three begins.
However whereas McLean is locked into the rotation shifting ahead, the Mets had not dedicated to Tong past Friday’s begin. However Mendoza confirmed after the sport that Tong will begin once more.
“I think as you roll into the last month of the season, you want to have the best roster you possibly can,” president of baseball operations David Stearns mentioned this week. “We think Jonah has a chance to be among that.”
Initially Revealed: August 29, 2025 at 10:30 PM EDT
