Paul Articulates – A closer look at Mike Vasil

As we steadily approach the February 14th date when pitchers and catchers first report to spring training in St. Lucie, it is time to look at some of the more intriguing prospects that will be trying to make their case for cracking the major league roster.  So much has been said in Mack’s Mets about the starting pitching staff, the bullpen, and the solid group of prospect pitchers coming up through the high minors.  No better place than the pitching to take a closer look at #9 on the NY Mets prospect list, Mike Vasil.

Mike Vasil pitched at Boston College Prep in Dorchester, MA and was very highly touted during his senior year.  How high you ask?  70 major league scouts attended one of his high school starts.  Not being one to disappoint, Vasil threw a perfect game that day. In his high school career, Mike went 22-4 with a 1.06 earned run average and recorded 217 strikeouts in 191 innings.  Everyone expected him to be a high draft pick.  However, after having some arm trouble he decided to forego the draft an attend college at the University of Virginia.

The beginning of his career at UVA was somewhat of a struggle, but by his junior year, Vasil had begun to show much of what the scouts had been excited about.  He had a solid year in 2021, and particularly impressed in a college world series outing against Texas where he struck out eight in seven innings while only giving up one run.  That year he was drafted in the eighth round (8.232) by the Mets and assigned to the Florida Complex League (FCL) where he posted a 1.29 ERA.

In 2022, his first full year with the Mets’ franchise, Vasil move quickly through the ranks, playing for the FCL Mets, the St. Lucie Mets (low A), and the Brooklyn Cyclones (high A).  That year he pitched 124 innings, recorded 138 strikeouts, and compiled a 4.65 ERA across the three clubs.  In 2023 he started the year with the Binghamton Rumble Ponies (51 IP, 57K, 3.71 ERA, 0.84 WHIP) and moved on to the Syracuse Mets (AAA) by mid-season.  There, he threw another 73 innings, posting a 5.30 ERA and 1.48 WHIP with 81 strikeouts.

One might look at the ERA numbers and question whether this is a dominant pitcher, but that has to be taken into context.  In just over two years in the Mets’ organization, Vasil has moved through four different levels of ball to the highest level in the minor league system.  His mid-90’s four-seam fastball with high RPM has good rise and he can also throw the curveball, slider, and changeup as solid secondary pitches.  His control has always been a strong point, and the Mets’ staff has encouraged him to be a little more aggressive with hitters instead of trying to nibble at the corners.  MLB.com gives him the following grades for his pitches: Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 50 | Overall: 50.

My expectation this year is for Mike Vasil to continue his upward trajectory.  He continues to work with the player development staff to improve his pitches, and the state of the art pitching lab in St. Lucie should provide him with valuable feedback.  Mike Steffanos wrote yesterday about this.  Vasil will compete for a slot on the MLB team this spring, but my projection is that he will begin the season in AAA and then see action in New York later in the season.  I would love to see him come up as a long reliever to get his feet under him rather than being thrown to the wolves as a starter.  With so much uncertainty around the ability of the current Mets’ starting rotation to limit runs, there should be many opportunities to get the young pitchers like Vasil some 2-3 inning stretches against MLB hitters to facilitate their transition.