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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Zach Thornton hates walking batters.
The rookie left-hander explained that disdain a little more than 24 hours before his major league debut on Tuesday afternoon. He suggested he dislikes free passes as much as fellow rookie Carson Benge does striking out.
One night later, Thornton learned how difficult it is to make that leap to the major league level. In the opening frame after surrendering a bloop single and losing Andres Chaparro to a walk after two close cutters at the bottom of the zone, CJ Abrams tagged him for a three-run home run.
It was a jolt to the 24-year-old left-hander, who has prided himself on his control throughout his minor league career. While Thornton looked poised in the wake of his rapid rise - he only made two Triple-A starts before his hasty call-up to fill Clay Holmes' spot in the rotation - there were also some hard lessons out of the gate.
"There's a few pitches that I threw out there tonight that I probably should have got a swing and miss on over at the Triple-A level, but there guys are a little bit better hitters so they're gonna take it," Thornton said.
The 24-year-old withstood that staggering shot and despite giving up another run on a single after walking Nasim Nuñez in the next inning was able to retire eight straight batters including back-to-back perfect frames in the third and fourth.
"Just knowing that I need to get in zone, I feel as though I belong here and my stuff's going to play," Thornton said. "If I can get in zone, I'll be all right."
Thornton's resiliency is what stood out to Carlos Mendoza. He did not waver after that early damage and appeared to get stronger as his outing went on. He exited with one out in the fifth after forcing James Wood to fly out to left field and finished with four earned runs allowed on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 4⅓ innings.
"Obviously, Abrams gets him there on that cutter for the three-run home run out of the gate, but I thought he competed," Mendoza said. "They had some good takes and some pitches that were strike to ball, but they ran his pitch count up. The one thing that I liked, even after he got punched there in the first inning, he didn't back down."
The emotions went beyond the typical excitement and nerves for Zach Thornton as he made his major league debut for the Mets on Wednesday night in Washington, D.C.
Thornton's dad, Paul, had been paralyzed a little more than a month ago following complications with spinal surgery. After a month spent relearning the ability to walk, Paul, along with Thornton's mom, Julie; sister Marissa, and many other friends were able to take in Thornton on a major league mound for the first time.
"It means everything to me. He's got his own battle that he has to put aside now so we're gonna get with him for the next 30 days and hopefully he can bounce back from his rehab."
Before Triple-A Syracuse played on Wednesday night, Jonah Tong was scratched from his scheduled start.
Mendoza said that there is a chance that Tong will pitch this weekend against the Marlins in some capacity in Miami. The Mets may want to give their starting pitchers an extra day off with the team in the midst of a stretch of 16 straight games with days.
"Where we're at with the bullpen and we'll see how much of length we get from our starters. There's a lot that's on the table. Ideally, we would like to give them an extra day, but they're ready for whatever the team needs."
David Peterson will make the start for the Mets in Thursday's series finale against the Nationals. Beyond that, it is unclear whether Thornton will make another start at the big leagues.
Tong has had a shaky open to the season at Syracuse where is 1-3 with a 5.68 ERA and 1.37 WHIP. On the heels of a combined two earned runs in 11 innings to open May, Tong gave up six earned runs on five hits and three walks last time out in 1⅔ innings.
"There's no denying he's been consistent, but we also like how he bounces back," Mendoza said. "We saw it last year when he was here with us that he had a couple of tough outings and he was able to recover the next one. We're not too worried about that. That's why he's in play. We believe. We're high on him."
After the Mets were forced to use six relief pitchers to cover nine innings in Monday night's 12-inning test, they have gotten some much-needed rest in the last two days.
Daniel Duarte was the only Mets reliever to throw in Wednesday's 9-6 loss, working 2⅓ scoreless innings but he was optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday to make room for Thornton.
On Thursday, Austin Warren worked one inning and Craig Kimbrel closed the game with two frames for the first time since 2022.
That should give Mendoza a little more flexibility entering Thursday, with six of their relief pitchers getting back-to-back days off. Sean Manaea and Devin Williams have now gone three days without pitching.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: After Zach Thornton emotional debut, what's next for Mets pitching staff
Continue reading...
The rookie left-hander explained that disdain a little more than 24 hours before his major league debut on Tuesday afternoon. He suggested he dislikes free passes as much as fellow rookie Carson Benge does striking out.
One night later, Thornton learned how difficult it is to make that leap to the major league level. In the opening frame after surrendering a bloop single and losing Andres Chaparro to a walk after two close cutters at the bottom of the zone, CJ Abrams tagged him for a three-run home run.
It was a jolt to the 24-year-old left-hander, who has prided himself on his control throughout his minor league career. While Thornton looked poised in the wake of his rapid rise - he only made two Triple-A starts before his hasty call-up to fill Clay Holmes' spot in the rotation - there were also some hard lessons out of the gate.
"There's a few pitches that I threw out there tonight that I probably should have got a swing and miss on over at the Triple-A level, but there guys are a little bit better hitters so they're gonna take it," Thornton said.
The 24-year-old withstood that staggering shot and despite giving up another run on a single after walking Nasim Nuñez in the next inning was able to retire eight straight batters including back-to-back perfect frames in the third and fourth.
"Just knowing that I need to get in zone, I feel as though I belong here and my stuff's going to play," Thornton said. "If I can get in zone, I'll be all right."
A special moment for Zach Thornton
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Thornton's resiliency is what stood out to Carlos Mendoza. He did not waver after that early damage and appeared to get stronger as his outing went on. He exited with one out in the fifth after forcing James Wood to fly out to left field and finished with four earned runs allowed on four hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 4⅓ innings.
"Obviously, Abrams gets him there on that cutter for the three-run home run out of the gate, but I thought he competed," Mendoza said. "They had some good takes and some pitches that were strike to ball, but they ran his pitch count up. The one thing that I liked, even after he got punched there in the first inning, he didn't back down."
The emotions went beyond the typical excitement and nerves for Zach Thornton as he made his major league debut for the Mets on Wednesday night in Washington, D.C.
Thornton's dad, Paul, had been paralyzed a little more than a month ago following complications with spinal surgery. After a month spent relearning the ability to walk, Paul, along with Thornton's mom, Julie; sister Marissa, and many other friends were able to take in Thornton on a major league mound for the first time.
"It means everything to me. He's got his own battle that he has to put aside now so we're gonna get with him for the next 30 days and hopefully he can bounce back from his rehab."
What's next for the Mets rotation? Is Jonah Tong in the mix?
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Before Triple-A Syracuse played on Wednesday night, Jonah Tong was scratched from his scheduled start.
Mendoza said that there is a chance that Tong will pitch this weekend against the Marlins in some capacity in Miami. The Mets may want to give their starting pitchers an extra day off with the team in the midst of a stretch of 16 straight games with days.
"Where we're at with the bullpen and we'll see how much of length we get from our starters. There's a lot that's on the table. Ideally, we would like to give them an extra day, but they're ready for whatever the team needs."
David Peterson will make the start for the Mets in Thursday's series finale against the Nationals. Beyond that, it is unclear whether Thornton will make another start at the big leagues.
Tong has had a shaky open to the season at Syracuse where is 1-3 with a 5.68 ERA and 1.37 WHIP. On the heels of a combined two earned runs in 11 innings to open May, Tong gave up six earned runs on five hits and three walks last time out in 1⅔ innings.
"There's no denying he's been consistent, but we also like how he bounces back," Mendoza said. "We saw it last year when he was here with us that he had a couple of tough outings and he was able to recover the next one. We're not too worried about that. That's why he's in play. We believe. We're high on him."
What is the state of the Mets' bullpen?
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After the Mets were forced to use six relief pitchers to cover nine innings in Monday night's 12-inning test, they have gotten some much-needed rest in the last two days.
Daniel Duarte was the only Mets reliever to throw in Wednesday's 9-6 loss, working 2⅓ scoreless innings but he was optioned back to Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday to make room for Thornton.
On Thursday, Austin Warren worked one inning and Craig Kimbrel closed the game with two frames for the first time since 2022.
That should give Mendoza a little more flexibility entering Thursday, with six of their relief pitchers getting back-to-back days off. Sean Manaea and Devin Williams have now gone three days without pitching.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: After Zach Thornton emotional debut, what's next for Mets pitching staff
Continue reading...
