Mets Set Rotation After Making Decision on Fifth Starter Spot

The Mets have decided on who will join the rotation as the fifth starter.

The New York Mets have officially made a decision to finalize the starting rotation.

With Kodai Senga on the injured list with a shoulder strain, the Mets had Luis Severino, Jose Quintana, Sean Manaea, and Adrian Houser locked in rotation spots. For the fifth starter spot, the team had a difficult decision to make between Tylor Megill and Jose Butto, both of whom have looked impressive this spring.

In the end, the Mets chose Megill as the fifth starter, while Butto was optioned to the Triple-A Syracuse Mets. Both of these were announced by Mets manager Carlos Mendoza.

Tylor Megill will be in the Mets' rotation to begin the season pic.twitter.com/rTBIQQOEBw

— SNY (@SNYtv) March 20, 2024

According to beat writer Anthony DiComo, the Mets chose Megill over Butto for three reasons. 

The first, and likely most important, reason was Megill's significant advantage in experience at the major league level. Butto, who turned 26 on Tuesday, has only 46 innings to his name across 2022 and 2023, appearing in 10 games (eight starts). On the other hand, the 28-year-old Megill already has a noteworthy body of work with 263 innings and 58 appearances (52 starts) over the past three seasons.

The second reason was Megill's strong finish to the 2023 season; despite finishing the year with a 4.70 ERA, he had a 2.55 mark over his final six starts. Finally, the third was that Megill was already built up after an offseason throwing program, which included the development of a splitter.

Both pitchers looked great during the spring. Butto appeared in four games (two starts) and allowed just one run and nine hits over 10 innings, with nine strikeouts against just two walks. He has a 0.90 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP.

As for Megill, he has a 3.45 ERA and 1.02 WHIP in five games (four starts) and 15.2 innings, with 16 strikeouts against only four walks. Before allowing four runs in 3.2 innings against the Washington Nationals on March 17, he had allowed just three in 12 innings of work.

Ultimately, the Mets' rotation is currently settled with Megill rounding it out. But if Butto continues to pitch well in Triple-A to begin the year, he could receive the much-desired opportunity to pitch in the majors.