Jonah Tong, a 22-year-old right-hander and the Mets' No. 4 prospect, will start Friday against the Miami Marlins after being called up. Tong leads the minor leagues in strikeouts and earned-run average, recording 162 strikeouts and a 1.59 ERA in double-A before promotion to triple-A Syracuse earlier this month. He threw 11.2 scoreless innings in Syracuse with 17 strikeouts. The Mets are engaged in a playoff race, trailing the Phillies by five games in the NL East while holding a 3.5-game wild-card lead. The club added Tong to provide a sixth starter during a 16-games-in-16-days stretch. Tong will face Eury Pérez at Citi Field Friday at 4:10 p.m. PDT.
The 22-year-old right-hander will make a start Friday against the Miami Marlins, according to Mets manager Carlos Mendoza. Tong will join a team that finds itself in the middle of a playoff race. The Mets are behind the Philadelphia Phillies by 5 games in the National League East and hold a 3½ game lead for the last wild card spot.
"This went fast for Jonah," Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns said during a news conference Tuesday. "But to his credit, he really conquered everything we put in front of him. He exceeded our expectations throughout this year, and he put himself in a position where he deserved to be considered for a day like this."
The Mets' seventh-round draft pick in 2022 opened the season in double-A Binghamton, where he made 20 starts. Tong struck out 162 batters and led the league with a 1.59 ERA when he was promoted to triple-A Syracuse in earlier this month. Tong will make a start with the big league team after pitching 11.2 innings in Syracuse without giving up a run while striking out 17.
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