After taking two of three from the New York Yankees over the weekend, the Mets are opening up a new series with the Washington Nationals to start this week.
Per Mets manager Carlos Mendoza, the team plans to promote left-handed pitching prospect Zach Thornton sometime this week, which will likely be on Wednesday. It’s unclear what the role will be, but he could either be the starter and work limited innings or be a bulk innings guy.
Thorton, 24, was a fifth-round draft pick by the New York Mets in 2023.
Heavy Sports’ own writer, Christopher Moore, predicted the move before the reports surfaced on Monday afternoon.
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Mets Plan to Promote Prospect Zach Thornton
GettyNAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – MAY 01: Manager Carlos Mendoza of the New York Mets looks on before the game against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on May 01, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images)
According to the MLB.com Mets’ prospect list, Zach Thornton is the 13th-ranked prospect in New York’s organization.
This is his bio per the prospect site:
“Despite the lighter stuff, Thornton goes right after hitters with a bulldog mentality, and it served him well with a 4.0 percent walk rate in 2025, sixth-lowest among 691 Minor Leaguers with at least 70 frames. Unless additional velocity comes in his age-24 season and beyond, his ceiling is fairly capped at being a pitchability No. 5 starter.”
In 12 innings with Triple-A Syracuse this season, Thornton has an ERA of 2.25 with 13 strikeouts.
In 37 total innings this year, he has an ERA of 3.16, which is very good for the minors.
The Mets are clearly dipping into some of their organizational pitching depth due to some recent injuries. New York also selected the contract of Daniel Duarte on Monday, and it’s likely he will be the odd man out when Wednesday rolls around.
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More on Zach Thornton…
MLBTradeRumors.com’s Darragh McDonald was quick to the news as it broke, and gave some insight to what Zach Thornton can bring to the Mets:
“Coming into 2026, Baseball America ranked him the #13 prospect in the system and FanGraphs had him 12th. He doesn’t have huge velocity, averaging just 91 miles per hour with his fastball these days, but both BA and FG highlight his excellent command. FG also highlights his vertical slot and his ability to hide the ball as part of his delivery. His full arsenal includes a four-seamer, sinker, slider, cutter, curveball and changeup.”
It will be interesting to see what the Mets front office does with its pitching staff over the next couple of weeks. It’s possible that New York also rotates some other minor league pitchers, like Jonah Tong or Jack Wenninger, into the starting rotation.
In 177+ total innings in the minors, Thornton has an ERA of 3.04 with 172 strikeouts and 41 walks issued.
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New York Mets Plan to Promote Southpaw Zach Thornton During Nationals Series