Mike Vasil

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked New York Mets #9 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 50/High
  
  Track Record: Vasil scuffled through three years at Virginia but has emerged as one of the Mets’ top starting pitcher prospects since they drafted him in the eighth round in 2021. Bone spurs in his elbow truncated his 2022 full-season debut, but he made 26 starts in 2023 and logged a career-high 124 innings, most of them at Triple-A Syracuse. Vasil walked just 4% of batters with Double-A Binghamton, but that rate shot up near 12% at Triple-A, where the automated ball-strike system wreaked havoc with pitchers’ walk rates.
  
  Scouting Report: Vasil has worked hard to turn himself from a pitcher who had a 4.74 ERA in 161 college innings to a four-pitch starter on the cusp of making his MLB debut. He came into the 2023 season in better shape and focused his attention on loading the back side of his delivery to throw harder and with more precision. Vasil pitches at 93-94 mph and tops near 95 with a four-seam fastball he uses to set up the rest of his repertoire. Like many pitchers contending with the ABS system at Triple-A, he had trouble registering called high strikes with the tight zone. Vasil’s mid-to-high-80s slider is his standout offering and grades as plus based on his ability to throw it for strikes or induce chases. He throws his slider both ahead and behind in the count. Vasil’s mid-80s changeup has developed into a trusty chase pitch he uses to try to put away batters. He will drop in an occasional low-80s curveball when ahead in the count.
  
  The Future: Vasil’s ability to command all four pitch types to both sides of the plate helps him keep hitters guessing. He is a high-probability starter who might fit at no. 4 or 5 in a rotation. Vasil is poised to make his MLB debut in 2024.
  
  Scouting Grades Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 60 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 55
• 
  Ranked New York Mets #12 prospect in 2023
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: An arm injury shut down Vasil as a Boston high school senior in 2018, so he withdrew from the draft and headed to Virginia. He never really launched in three collegiate seasons but attracted the Mets' interest in the eighth round in 2021. Vasil logged just 71 innings in 2022 as he dealt with bone spurs in his elbow, though he returned for the Arizona Fall League and looked sharp in 15.1 innings.
  
  Scouting Report: Vasil throws four pitches for strikes and used them to stymie Class A hitters in 2022, drawing whiff rates of 25% or better with all four. No individual pitch type grades as plus, but he mixes and matches to good effect. Vasil sits 94 mph and topped out at 98, using his four-seamer up in the zone and his secondary pitches down. His low-80s curveball is his best pitch and features 12-to-6 bite and good depth. His slider has average potential and is thrown in the high 80s with more break and up to 92 mph as more of a cutter. He made strides commanding his mid-80s changeup that flashes average. Vasil is a fierce competitor who relies on control more than true command, leading some scouts to project him to high-leverage relief.
  
  The Future: The Mets are excited that prospects like Vasil and others will give them upper-levels pitching depth in 2023 that had been lacking in recent seasons. Ultimately he probably fits as a No. 5 starter or quality reliever.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Curveball: 55. Slider: 50. Changeup: 50. Control: 50.
• 
  Ranked New York Mets #14 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: Vasil lined up as one of the top perp pitchers in the 2018 draft before an arm injury shut him down early that spring. The Boston prep subsequently withdrew his name from the draft. Vasil never quite launched at Virginia and had a 4.52 ERA over 81.2 innings in his draft year of 2021. Still, the Mets had good reports and drafted him in the eighth round.
  
  Scouting Report: The Mets were thrilled with what they saw from Vasil in his first pro summer and regard him as their best late-round pick from the 2021 draft. In seven innings in the Florida Complex League, he struck out 10, walked none and allowed three hits in seven innings. Vasil topped out at 97 mph in his pro debut but sits more in the low 90s with some occasional run on his four-seam fastball. His mid-80s slider is thrown with power in the high 80s and flashes plus at times. Vasil shows a well-rounded starter’s arsenal with an upper-70s curveball and mid-80s changeup with average potential. Those pitches help keep opposing hitters off-balance, especially lefthanded ones. He has good tempo and throws enough strikes to stay in the rotation.
  
  The Future: Vasil has a chance to develop four average or better pitches to go with an average command and control profile. Ultimately, he could fit at the back of a rotation or in a bulk reliever-type role.
  

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #112 prospect in 2021 draft
  Back in 2018, Vasil looked like he could have been one of the first pitchers selected and had a chance to go among the top-10 picks. However, he got injured during his high school season and emailed teams before the draft that he would honor his commitment to Virginia. Three years later, Vasil isn’t seen as a top-of-the-first talent, as his eye-popping stuff out of high school has never fully come back. He posted a 4.89 ERA in 15 starts and 73.2 innings this spring, while striking out 65 batters (7.9 K/9) and walking 17 (2.1 BB/9). Vasil has touched 96 mph with his fastball this spring, but it sits in the 89-91 mph range and is just an average or fringy pitch that gets very little swing and miss. Vasil also throws a curveball, slider and changeup, with most scouts preferring the change out of all his secondaries and questioning his underlying feel for spin. His curveball is a mid-70s, 12-to-6 breaker that looks like a get-me-over pitch more than a wipeout offering, while his slider ranges from the lower-to-upper 80s. Vasil has to rely on advanced command more than overpowering stuff at this point, and he generally shows good feel to spot his four-pitch mix in and out of the zone. At times he nibbles too much, while trying to avoid contact in the zone, so he could be the rare arm with better command than control—in terms of walk rate. If a team believes it can tick up Vasil’s velocity in pro ball or help him improve his breaking stuff or add a cutter, he’s an interesting sleeper pick thanks to his solid pitching ability and his high school pedigree.

• February, 2023 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: An arm injury shut down Vasil as a Boston high school senior in 2018, so he withdrew from the draft and headed to Virginia. He never really launched in three collegiate seasons but attracted the Mets' interest in the eighth round in 2021. Vasil logged just 71 innings in 2022 as he dealt with bone spurs in his elbow, though he returned for the Arizona Fall League and looked sharp in 15.1 innings.
  
  Scouting Report: Vasil throws four pitches for strikes and used them to stymie Class A hitters in 2022, drawing whiff rates of 25% or better with all four. No individual pitch type grades as plus, but he mixes and matches to good effect. Vasil sits 94 mph and topped out at 98, using his four-seamer up in the zone and his secondary pitches down. His low-80s curveball is his best pitch and features 12-to-6 bite and good depth. His slider has average potential and is thrown in the high 80s with more break and up to 92 mph as more of a cutter. He made strides commanding his mid-80s changeup that flashes average. Vasil is a fierce competitor who relies on control more than true command, leading some scouts to project him to high-leverage relief.
  
  The Future: The Mets are excited that prospects like Vasil and others will give them upper-levels pitching depth in 2023 that had been lacking in recent seasons. Ultimately he probably fits as a No. 5 starter or quality reliever.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Curveball: 55. Slider: 50. Changeup: 50. Control: 50.
• December, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade/Risk: 50/High
  
  Track Record: An arm injury shut down Vasil as a Boston high school senior in 2018, so he withdrew from the draft and headed to Virginia. He never really launched in three collegiate seasons but attracted the Mets' interest in the eighth round in 2021. Vasil logged just 71 innings in 2022 as he dealt with bone spurs in his elbow, though he returned for the Arizona Fall League and looked sharp in 15.1 innings.
  
  Scouting Report: Vasil throws four pitches for strikes and used them to stymie Class A hitters in 2022, drawing whiff rates of 25% or better with all four. No individual pitch type grades as plus, but he mixes and matches to good effect. Vasil sits 94 mph and topped out at 98, using his four-seamer up in the zone and his secondary pitches down. His low-80s curveball is his best pitch and features 12-to-6 bite and good depth. His slider has average potential and is thrown in the high 80s with more break and up to 92 mph as more of a cutter. He made strides commanding his mid-80s changeup that flashes average. Vasil is a fierce competitor who relies on control more than true command, leading some scouts to project him to high-leverage relief.
  
  The Future: The Mets are excited that prospects like Vasil and others will give them upper-levels pitching depth in 2023 that had been lacking in recent seasons. Ultimately he probably fits as a No. 5 starter or quality reliever.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55. Curveball: 55. Slider: 50. Changeup: 50. Control: 50.
• April, 2022 Scouting Report
  BA Grade: 45/High
  
  Track Record: Vasil lined up as one of the top perp pitchers in the 2018 draft before an arm injury shut him down early that spring. The Boston prep subsequently withdrew his name from the draft. Vasil never quite launched at Virginia and had a 4.52 ERA over 81.2 innings in his draft year of 2021. Still, the Mets had good reports and drafted him in the eighth round.
  
  Scouting Report: The Mets were thrilled with what they saw from Vasil in his first pro summer and regard him as their best late-round pick from the 2021 draft. In seven innings in the Florida Complex League, he struck out 10, walked none and allowed three hits in seven innings. Vasil topped out at 97 mph in his pro debut but sits more in the low 90s with some occasional run on his four-seam fastball. His mid-80s slider is thrown with power in the high 80s and flashes plus at times. Vasil shows a well-rounded starter&#39s arsenal with an upper-70s curveball and mid-80s changeup with average potential. Those pitches help keep opposing hitters off-balance, especially lefthanded ones. He has good tempo and throws enough strikes to stay in the rotation.
  
  The Future: Vasil has a chance to develop four average or better pitches to go with an average command and control profile. Ultimately, he could fit at the back of a rotation or in a bulk reliever-type role.
  
  Scouting Grades: Fastball: 50. Curveball: 50. Slider: 55. Changeup: 50. Control: 50.
• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Vasil lined up as one of the top perp pitchers in the 2018 draft before an arm injury shut him down early that spring. The Boston prep subsequently withdrew his name from the draft. Vasil never quite launched at Virginia and had a 4.52 ERA over 81.2 innings in his draft year of 2021. Still, the Mets had good reports and drafted him in the eighth round.
  
  Scouting Report: The Mets were thrilled with what they saw from Vasil in his first pro summer and regard him as their best late-round pick from the 2021 draft. In seven innings in the Florida Complex League, he struck out 10, walked none and allowed three hits in seven innings. Vasil topped out at 97 mph in his pro debut but sits more in the low 90s with some occasional run on his four-seam fastball. His mid-80s slider is thrown with power in the high 80s and flashes plus at times. Vasil shows a well-rounded starter’s arsenal with an upper-70s curveball and mid-80s changeup with average potential. Those pitches help keep opposing hitters off-balance, especially lefthanded ones. He has good tempo and throws enough strikes to stay in the rotation.
  
  The Future: Vasil has a chance to develop four average or better pitches to go with an average command and control profile. Ultimately, he could fit at the back of a rotation or in a bulk reliever-type role.