Next up on our list is a right-handed pitcher.
Name: Jonah Tong
Position: RHP
Born: 6/19/2003
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 180 lbs.
Bats/Throws: R/R
Acquired: 2022 MLB Draft, 7th Round (Bill Crothers Secondary School, Ontario, Canada)
2024 Season: 4 G (2 GS), 18.2 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 0 ER (0.00 ERA), 5 BB, 36 K, .269 BABIP (Single-A) / 19 G (19 GS), 85.0 IP, 74 H, 39 R, 35 ER (3.71 ERA), 38 BB, 110 K, .338 BABIP (High-A) / 2 G, (2 GS), 9.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 4 BB, 14 K, .167 BABIP (Double-A)
A native of Markham, Ontario, Canada, Jonah Reid Tin Chee Matthew Tong grew up in a family of athletes. His father, Alex, played hockey and volleyball in high school. His mother, Karen, played softball, field hockey, and volleyball. Jonah has two sisters, and both are athletes as well, with older sister Morgan competing in gymnastics for Central Michigan University and younger sister Montana playing softball and baseball. In 2021, the right-hander pitched at Bill Crothers Secondary School in Markham, and then transferred to the Georgia Premier Academy for his senior season in 2022. He also pitched for the Frederick Keys of the MLB Draft League in 2022, making four appearances and three starts. He posted a 10.80 ERA in 11.2 innings, allowing 14 hits, walking 10, and striking out 14.
Tong had a commitment to North Dakota State University but ended up signing with the Mets after they drafted him in the seventh round of the 2022 MLB Draft and offered him a $225,800 signing bonus, exactly slot value. He did not pitch in 2022 and going into the 2023 season was not considered a top prospect by Amazin’ Avenue, with only Steve (18) and Lukas (25) ranking him on their Top 25 prospects lists. His 2023 season got off to a late start when the Mets initially held him out from organized games. Assigned to the FCL Mets, the 20-year-old finally made his first start of the season on June 30 and made 7 appearances with the FCL Mets, pitching about once a week. He threw a total of 12.2 innings, his earlier appearances more abbreviated and his later appearances multi-inning outings, and allowed 9 earned runs, giving up 9 hits, walking 13, and striking out 25. He was promoted to the St. Lucie Mets at the end of August and made three appearances with them, allowing 5 earned runs in 8.1 innings, allowing 8 hits, walking 9, and striking out 13. All in all, in his first year as a professional, Tong posted a 6.00 ERA in 21.0 innings over 10 games, allowing 17 hits, walking 22, and striking out 38. Once again, he did not make Amazin’ Avenue’s Top 25 Mets Prospects list.
That off-season, seeking to improve his control, Tong adopted a new mentality of not attempting to fine-tune his pitch placement. He also added a new slider to his pitching repertoire, seeking to add a pitch to his arsenal to be a middle-ground bridge between his overhand fastball and his big 12-6 curveball. When the 2024 season began, the fruits of his effort were immediately apparent. Assigned to the St. Lucie Mets, he went unscored for 18.2 innings, has scattering just 7 hits, giving up 5 unintentional walks, and striking out 36 of the 68 total batters he faced. He was promoted to the Brooklyn Cyclones at the beginning of May, and while he had his share of growing pains there, he added his name to the annals of great Brooklyn Cyclone pitchers, posting a 3.71 ERA in 85.0 innings with 74 hits allowed, 38 walks, and 110 strikeouts. He was promoted to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies at the beginning of September and had an incredible debut, retiring the first 17 batters he faced, allowing his first Rumble Ponies baserunner in the sixth inning when Somerset infielder Max Burt reached base on a Jeremiah Jackson throwing error. The right-hander needed 77 pitches to throw 6.1 innings and threw 51 of those for strikes, striking out 9 and generating 14 swings-and-misses. His 81 Game Score was the highest in his career and was the second-highest any Mets minor league starter logged in 2024, behind only Brandon Sproat and the 84 Game Score he posted on June 2, when he threw seven scoreless innings against the Harrisburg Senators, allowing one hit, walking one, and striking out ten. Tong came back down to earth in his second- and final- start, but his season was undeniable. In 113.0 cumulative innings between Single-A, High-A, and Double-A, he posted a 3.03 ERA with 85 hits allowed, 47 walks, and 160 strikeouts, the most of any Mets minor leaguer in 2024- and third most in the entire organization, trailing only big leaguers Sean Manaea and Luis Severino and their 184 and 161 strikeouts, respectively.
Tong, who has born in 2003, has mechanics reminiscent of two of the most notable pitchers of his youth: Roy Halladay and Tim Lincecum. The 6’1”, 180-pound right-hander throws from a high-three-quarters, virtually over-the-top arm slot with a long action through the back, dropping and driving off the mound with a large stride and throwing with some effort, giving his pitches good extension but negatively impacting his command and control in the past.
His four-seam fastball sits in the low-to-mid-90s, averaging 92.8 MPH during his time with the St. Lucie Mets. While the pitch can top out as high as 95 MPH, it isn’t velocity that resulted in a 49.1% Whiff/Swing rate and 14 of his 36 strikeouts. Thanks to the amount of backspin the pitch gets, his extension off of the mound, and the angle of his arm at release, Tong’s fastball has averaged 20 inches of induced vertical break in the Florida State League and elsewhere, causing a ton of swing-and-miss, especially when he elevates the ball.
Coming into the season, Tong mainly was a fastball-curveball pitcher who occasionally mixed in his slider and changeup. This past season, he relied on his slider a lot more. This cutter-like pitch has essentially become his main strikeout pitch after his fastball, replacing his curveball. It has hard, gyroscopic break with 2-6 inches of horizontal hop and 26-37 inches of vertical drop, resulting in high strikeout and Whiff/Swing rates.
This curveball sits in the mid-70s and tunnels exceptionally well with his fastball. Averaging spin rates over 2500 RPM, the pitch has massive 12-6 drop, sometimes getting as much as 70 inches of vertical break. Tong keeps the curveball down, mainly working at the bottom of the strike zone or under it to get batters to swing over the pitch or to golf ball it into the air for pop flies or flyballs.
His changeup is the least used of his arsenal, but it was an effective offering in 2024.He uses the low-to-mid-80s pitch specifically against left-handed hitters and in the limited amount of times he has turned to it, it has been a useful weapon against them.
Historically, Tong has struggled with his command and control, but changes to his arsenal and his mentality and preparation have seemingly improved it significantly.