Gagnon Turning Into Valuable Part of Mets Roster

Every so often, teams sign a player to be organizational depth, and that player eventually emerges to be something much more than that. There are several results like this in Mets history. In 1999, Pat Mahomes became a valuable part of the Mets bullpen. Of course, we saw R.A. Dickey go from organizational arm to Cy Young Award winner.

What separates each of these players from Drew Gagnon is they had previous Major League experience. That’s not to say the 28-year-old rookie was never a prospect.

In fact, when he was drafted in the third round of the 2011 draft out of California State University Long Beach, Baseball America said Gagnon “has the ingredients to be a workhorse mid-to-late-rotation starter in the big leagues.” From 2011-2014, he was regarded as a top 26 prospect in the Brewers organization.

Baseball America was not the only outlet to have that opinion of Gagnon. In 2013, John Sickels of Minor League Ball rated Gagnon as the Brewers 16th best prospect. In rating him as such, Sickels saw a three pitch pitcher with “decent command who has pitched well without genuinely dominating.” Ultimately, Sickels saw Gagnon as someone who could be a mid-rotation starter.

Even with Gagnon seen as a potential mid-rotation starter, things did not pan out that way for him.

By 2015, he fell off those prospect rankings. It was largely due to performance. In 2014, he had a less than impressive season. In 28 starts, he was 11-6 with a 3.96 ERA and a 1.96 K/BB. Things were worse in 2015 when he went 2-12 with a 6.67 ERA in 19 starts and seven relief appearances between Double and Triple-A. His demotion to the bullpen was an indication Gagnon was no longer going to be the mid-rotation starter the Brewers had hoped he would be.

After the 2016 season, he was no longer a Brewer as he was effectively a throw-in in the Martin Maldonado–Jett Bandy trade between the Brewers and Angels. His one season in the Angels organization was less than impressive. In his role as a swingman, he had a 6.25 ERA and a 1.552 WHIP. This left him as a minor league free agent looking for a home.

The Mets saw something in him others didn’t. Of note, Gagnon had shown good spin and sink on his change-up. As he got a better feel in shorter stints, his strikeout rates improved. With the Mets pitching staff having a number of injuries, it is that combination which would give him an opportunity.

In fact, when he was surprisingly first called-up, Mickey Callaway said, “Really good changeup. He’s very aggressive with his fastball. He throws it in the zone. We talked about it [Sunday]: These guys that come up here, they need to throw the ball over the plate. If they can do that, they always have a chance.” (New York Post).

That’s what Gagnon has received from the Mets – a chance. In Triple-A last year, he led the league in strikeouts. It led to his getting called up a few times much like how he has been this year.

Through the call-ups, we have seen Gagnon succeed in short spurts. In his first career start against the Phillies, he struck out the side in the first inning. In his four relief appearances, he had a 1.23 ERA. That stint kept him on the 40 man roster through the offseason, and it led to his two relief appearances this year.

In both of those relief appearances, Gagnon bailed out the Mets. On April 16, he completely bailed out the bullpen after Steven Matz failed to record an out. Despite pitching on short rest, he’d allow just two earned over his first five innings pitched. Last night, he got the Mets out of a bases-loaded jam, and he pitched a scoreless 1oth allowing the Mets to win in walk-off fashion.

Every time Gagnon has pitched, he has impressed. He may not be the mid-rotation starter he was once projected to be, but he is still a useful arm. He is someone who has made a case to be a part of the bullpen. In fact, the Mets are going to have to find some reason to justify sending him back down with how much he has helped the team this year.

Overall, Gagnon shows that if you give a talented pitcher enough opportunities, and he finds his way to the right organization, he is eventually going to show his value. For the Mets, that may just be a key part of their bullpen.