Earlier this summer, Jonah Tong posted a photo carousel on Instagram featuring several photos of himself wearing a Binghamton Rumble Ponies uniform with the caption, “Anyone know what a rumble pony is?” Maybe he figured it out over the next six starts, the only others he would make for Double-A Binghamton, but it might not be a question he needs an answer to.
Tong will make his big-league debut Friday night, pitching for the Mets at Citi Field in the second game of a three-game set against the Miami Marlins. The magnitude of the moment is not lost on Tong, a gregarious 22-year-old Canadian drafted in 2022. So far, he’s taking it in stride.
“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 told reporters after arriving in Queens on Thursday afternoon. “I think everything else is going to take care of itself.”
It’s a big moment for the player development department as well. While Tong isn’t guaranteed a rotation spot past Friday, having three homegrown pitchers make Major League starts this season shows some major progress with the starting pitching pipeline. Brandon Sproat could be in the mix for a September call-up as well.
Blade Tidwell was the first of the group to make his MLB debut this season, doing so in May in St. Louis. The Mets used him to acquire reliever Tyler Rogers from the San Francisco Giants at the trade deadline, knowing there were more arms coming in Tong, Sproat and Nolan McLean.
The player development department recently graduated McLean to the big leagues, where he’s had instant success, becoming the first player in club history to win his first three decisions. Having faced Tong, he knows the challenge he brings with his over-the-top delivery.
“That kid is special,” McLean said Wednesday after shutting out the Philadelphia Phillies over eight innings. “I remember when I first got drafted, I stood in as a hitter on one of his bullpens just to watch, and I haven’t seen a fastball like that before.”
It’s a hard fastball, but it’s the way he throws it with a slingshot-like delivery, getting deep and far down the mound, that provides significant deception. Tong’s fastball has a ton of ride, with a vertical break of about 18 inches. It’s as if he pitches much taller than his 6-foot-1 frame.
“It just gets on you, and it was only in a bullpen too,” McLean said. “So I can’t imagine being a hitter and having to face them with the unique delivery, as well as mid-upper 90s [velocity].”
Tong has added more pitches over the last few seasons, with a changeup that has impressed scouts the most.
“I know he’s developed three more pitches since then, and they’re all all plus,” McLean said. “So it’s going to be fun to watch him Friday.”
It’s been a quick rise for Tong, who has made only two Triple-A starts, but the Mets are adamant that he’s earned it. His poise on the mound, aptitude for learning and the results on the mound this season pushed the Mets to call him up a season earlier than expected. Tong has gone 10-5 with a 1.43 ERA over 22 starts between Double- and Triple-A.
“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 said earlier this week. “We think Jonah has a chance to be among that. He’s earned the opportunity, and so we’re going to give him the start and look forward to seeing how it goes.”
