One of the biggest reasons that the New York Mets have gotten off to a slow start this season is due to a lack of depth in the bullpen. General Manager Billy Eppler opted not to fill the unit with proven veterans, instead going for an approach that allowed him flexibility with optionable relievers in the middle innings. That approach hasn’t panned out thus far as the bullpen has played a big role in several losses lately, but there are a few intriguing relievers in the minor leagues that could be a part of the solution. One name that hasn’t gotten a ton of attention so far is lefty Nate Lavender, who is the focus of this week’s edition of Minor League Mondays.
Lavender, a 14th-round pick in 2021 out of Illinois, split time between the rotation and bullpen in college but the Mets opted to convert him into a full-time reliever. The decision has paid off nicely as Lavender’s stuff has worked well in shorter stints, allowing him to get hitters to chase his offerings at some of the highest rates of any pitcher in the Mets’ farm system. The team assigned Lavender to AA Binghamton to start the season and he dominated the Eastern League, pitching to a 1.74 ERA in seven appearances while striking out 19 batters in 10.1 innings pitched. That performance earned Lavender a quick promotion to AAA Syracuse where he has held his own, going 1-1 with a 3.27 ERA and striking out another 16 batters in 11 innings pitched.
Lavender has seen his walk rate increase at Syracuse, averaging nearly a walk an inning after registering just three free passes with the Rumble Ponies. That metric is an outlier compared to Lavender’s minor-league norms and should stabilize as he gets used to the increased level of competition.
The key to Lavender’s success has been a lethal changeup that has late dive to hitters on both sides of the plate. Combining that changeup with a fastball that is about 12 miles per hour faster than his 79 mile per hour change also makes the pitch even more effective, giving him two strong offerings along with a slider that isn’t nearly as good as the other two pitches.
Lavender has recently cracked the Mets’ Top 30 prospects, checking in at No. 29 according to MLB.com, and has a chance to make the big league bullpen this season if he gets his walks under control at Syracuse. The Mets recently promoted lefty Josh Walker to take a stab at a big league relief role and manager Buck Showalter has mentioned publicly that he would prefer to have two lefties in the bullpen. Walker’s performance will likely impact when (or if) Lavender gets a shot this season but it would be surprising if he doesn’t make his big league debut in 2023.
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