Player Data: Age: 22 (6/13/2003) B/T: R/R
Primary Stats: 2-3, 7.71 ERA, 1.77 WHIP, 18.2 IP, 22 SO, 9 BB, 5 G (5 GS)
Advanced Stats: 53 ERA+, 25.3 K%, 10.3 BB%, 4.87 xERA, 4.31 FIP, 4.31 xFIP, 0.2 fWAR, -0.8 bWAR
2025 Salary: $760,000 (arbitration eligible in 2028)
Grade: C+
2025 Review
Tong’s 2025 season could be considered a bit of a whirlwind. He had a dominant, eye-popping minor league season that earned him a late call-up to the big leagues — partly due to necessity, and partly due to his performance. He debuted with the Mets at just 22 years old in a year spent mostly with Double-A Binghamton. He was only a year removed from pitching for Single-A St. Lucie.
His first taste of the majors was up and down. At times, he showed the kind of promise his minor league numbers had indicated. At other times, he looked like he might not be quite ready yet.
This grade and report card are focused on his MLB performance, with consideration to the context of his promotion.
His 7.71 ERA in five starts doesn’t really tell the whole story. Among those five starts, two were great, two were bad and one was so-so.
He impressed in his MLB debut despite allowing three unearned runs. He held the Miami Marlins to just one earned run, with six strikeouts and no walks.
His best MLB start thus far was his fourth one. He allowed just an unearned run in five innings, holding the San Diego Padres to one hit while striking out eight and, once again, issuing zero walks.
The lack of walks in both of those starts was particularly encouraging, given that control was his lone flaw in the minors.
Tong’s second MLB start against the Cincinnati Reds was a bit of an oddity. He allowed only three hits in an MLB career-high six innings, but all three hits happened to be homers. He struck out six and walked four.
Disaster struck in his third start. After holding it together through two good but imperfect outings, he completely fell apart against the Texas Rangers. He couldn’t locate his changeup and didn’t have good feel for a third pitch. He gave up six runs while recording just two outs.
But he followed that up with his aforementioned best start. It was a good sign to see a young pitcher bounce back in a big way after experiencing a nightmarish outing.
In his last start, though, under the pressure of playoff implications, he faltered against the Chicago Cubs. He allowed five runs on seven hits, and only recorded six outs. He struck out just one.
Tong’s stuff can be electric, as evidenced in his minor league season (1.43 ERA in 113 2/3 innings) and spurts in the majors. He’s undoubtedly an organizational success story, originally a seventh-round pick while committed to North Dakota State. He lit the minors on fire this year, and Mets fans got to see a glimpse of him on the biggest stage.
Ultimately, Tong probably wasn’t seasoned enough to be a quality MLB contributor right away. Opposing batters hit .356 against his fastball, and when his changeup wasn’t on, he ran into trouble quickly. The Mets promoted him hoping he could help this team salvage a playoff spot, but realistically, not every pitcher can come up and immediately shine the way Nolan McLean did.
2026 Preview
It will be good for Tong to get some more reps at Triple-A in the early portion of the 2026 season. Depending on how things go, it’ll be time for the Mets to start thinking about bringing him back up.
The Mets handled his development a little oddly; they left him in Double-A for months on end, but rushed him through Triple-A to the majors. He made 20 starts in Double-A and just two in Triple-A. A little more time in Triple-A before getting the call might have benefited him. Granted, he absolutely shoved in the two starts he did make for Syracuse, with 17 strikeouts and no runs allowed in 11 2/3 innings.
The focus for Tong going forward should be developing a third pitch he can trust. He’s showed signs with the curveball, but he only used it 12.4% of the time in his MLB stint. As we saw in some of his rough moments, it became almost impossible for him to be effective when he was relying on two pitches while struggling with command. One of the things that made McLean so successful right away was that he had a deep arsenal of options he could go to. Tong was much more hit-or-miss.
Tong has still only made seven starts above the Double-A level. And he’ll still be 22 years old when the 2026 season starts, with his 23rd birthday on June 19. There’s a lot of room for him to grow; he hasn’t even scratched the surface of the type of MLB pitcher he can be. The ideal outlook for Tong is to get a handful of Triple-A starts, pitch well, then come back up to the majors with improved results.
