Last year at this time, the Mets had 62 players at their major league spring training. This number consisted of members of their 40-man roster, non-roster invitees, and an eager left-handed pitcher who often found his way over from the minor league side of camp, named Nate Lavender.
The 23-year-old Lavender’s eagerness was matched by his ability. His long extension leads to a sneaky fastball that looks faster to the batter than it does to the radar gun. And his “bulldog” approach suggests that one day he can be counted on in high-leverage situations.
Before we get ahead of ourselves though, let’s take a look at what he’s done so far. Lavender was the Mets 14th round draft pick in 2021 (overall pick #412 for those of you scoring at home). That season he pitched in 4 Rookie ball games, yielding just one run over 6.2 innings and saving 3 games for the FCL Mets. In his first full minor league season, Lavender pitched for the Single-A St. Lucie Mets and the High-A Brooklyn Cyclones. In a combined 26 games for those two teams, Lavender went 6-3 with a 1.70 ERA, saving all 3 opportunities, and striking out 67 batters in 47.2 innings.
In last year’s Spring Training, Lavender “pitched in” whenever he could, despite initially being stationed in the minor league camp. Not only did this give him the chance to learn from some of the veterans on the club, it also opened an opportunity to showcase his talents. In fact, Lavender pitched 4.1 scoreless innings in the spring despite never having pitched in double-A before. While he wasn’t quite ready to pitch in the majors just yet, Nate Lavender’s 2023 spring gave the Mets something to look forward to in the future. And he was just getting started.
Nate Lavender started out the 2023 minor league season with Double-A Binghamton, and quickly proved that he was ready for the next level. In 10.1 innings, he struck out 19, walked only 3, had a 1.74 ERA, and was 4-4 in save opportunities. After just 37 games in Rookie ball through Double-A, the Mets decided that Lavender was ready for Syracuse.
While the results in his 35 Syracuse games were not quite as sparkling as all of his earlier stops, they were still impressive: A 3.27 ERA, 4 holds, 3 saves, and 67 strikeouts in 44 innings. As much as the Mets needed left-handed pitching help last season (or right-handed pitching help, for that matter), they determined that it wasn’t yet Lavender’s time. He did walk a bit too many (averaging more than .5 walks per inning), and for the first time in his brief career, he struggled with the home run ball, giving up 7 after having only given up 1 home run in 33 prior minor league games.
Meanwhile, in the majors, the 2023 Mets rolled out 6 left-handed relievers, most of whom are no longer with the team. Aside from Brooks Raley (66 games, 2.80 ERA) and Adam Kolarek (0 runs in 4.2 innings), the rest of the southpaw squad left much to be desired, with no ERA below 5.03. Raley will be back with the team this year and will be joined by veteran lefty Jake Diekman. However, as the saying goes, you can never have too many lefty relievers. Actually, there is no such saying, but there should be – it’s a highly specialized category of player, and when they’re good, it can be game-changing.
When Nate Lavender showed up to this year’s camp, with an invite to the major league side, he might not have been expected to make the opening day roster. Then again, the 412th pick in the 2021 draft seems to find ways to surpass expectations. So far this spring, Lavender is the only Mets pitcher to appear in 2 games, and in those appearances, he has struck out 4 and not allowed a baserunner. Of course, Spring Training stats should be taken with a considerable grain of salt (or sea salt in Florida’s case, I guess). Still, a few more outings like he’s had so far, and this deceptive lefty will be making an obvious case to be with the big club at some point in 2024.
