Mets' starter 'moving closer' to return from elbow injury

Megill's 5-5 record and 3.95 ERA may not be eye-popping, but his return would be a welcome boost for a rotation that has struggled to pitch deep into games.

After Friday's game, the Mets have now gone 51 games without two different starters having recorded at least one start of six or more innings. Furthermore, since June 11, a Mets starting pitcher has only pitched six or more innings five times. David Peterson is responsible for all five of those starts.

That stat highlights how often the Mets have been forced to turn to their bullpen earlier than planned. And while the revamped bullpen has lived up to its potential since the trade deadline, it can only carry the heavy workload for so long.

New York was reportedly in on a handful of big-name starters before the trade deadline, but ultimately stood pat in a relatively slow starting pitcher market.

With the calendar flipped to August, New York's rotation will have to find solutions internally. While there's been speculation about top prospects Nolan McLean and Brandon Sproat, there is no indication that the Mets are eager or ready to call either one or both of the prospects up to the big leagues.

As both Megill and Paul Blackburn near returns, it is growing more likely that Sproat and McLean won't see the big leagues until 2026 at the earliest. Given this reality, the Mets are likely going to work with what they have: a surplus of starting pitchers.

Come October, every team needs every reliable arm they can get to give them the best chance to hoist the World Series trophy. Depth has been a core principle for president of baseball operations David Stearns since his hiring in October 2023. With that emphasis on depth in mind, expect Megill to be a key piece as the Mets make their stretch run.