Tobias Myers Is Walking Nobody While Throwing Fewer Strikes. How?

[Brandon Glick]

Image courtesy of © Kevin R. Wexler-NorthJersey.com / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Freddy Peralta is more or less living up to his billing as the front-man of the New York Mets' remodeled rotation through three starts, but he wasn't the only pitcher they received in exchange for top prospects Brandon Sproat and Jett Williams.

Tobias Myers was also included in that deal, and he's no mere throw-in. The 27-year-old right-hander has looked dominant in the early going in 2026, pitching to a 1.13 ERA over his first four appearances that have covered eight innings total. That's a small sample to work with, but relievers are always walking that tightrope; what's most impressive about Myers' performance thus far aren't his raw stats, but the steadiness and command he's displayed on the mound.

Beyond wildly impressive expected metrics -- his xERA sits at 0.88 and his xBA (expected batting average against) rests at .142 -- Myers is completely owning the strike zone this year. He's issued just one walk thus far... and it was an intentional free pass offered to the St. Louis Cardinals on April 1. Crazily enough, he's actually accomplished this by throwing fewer strikes and more pitches outside the zone.

This is normally the point that you'd look to a guy's chase rate and expect to see an unsustainable explosion, but Myers is actually coaxing out-of-zone swings less often than he did in 2025.

So, what's happening? It may sound oversimplified, but this appears to be a case of being effectively wild.

The term "effectively wild" is often applied to pitchers who rack up tons of strikeouts and walks, but it's also an apt descriptor of Myers, who is making a living near the zone in 2026. There's a few pitches in there that are huge outliers that missed by considerable margins, but look at how effectively he's pitching around the edges of the box in those heat maps. With the introduction of ABS this season, batters are more inclined than ever to protect the true corners of the strike zone, hence why they're so susceptible to taking defensive hacks when a pitcher is punishing the invisible lines we see on every broadcast.

Naturally, Myers' Stuff+ (103) and Location+ (105) are both sitting at career-high levels and above league average (which is 100). As Brewers insider Jack Stern explored over on our sister site Brewer Fanatic, Myers became particularly good at building his plan of attack around his four-seamer and splitter last year, which has carried over nicely into his time with the Mets. Both his splitter and slider are responsible for a .000 wOBA this year, which means that opposing hitters have produced literally zero offensive value against either pitch. You don't need any other numbers to know how good that is.

Pessimists will point out the .056 batting average on balls in play he's allowed as a sign of extremely good fortune, especially because batters have averaged more than 90 miles per hour on their exit velocities on balls in play against Myers. And while that is a fair concern for a fly-ball pitcher, it's worth pointing out that he also hasn't given up a single barreled ball all year. It's a balancing act, but one that he's become adept at performing.

Eventually, he'll walk a batter unintentionally, and there may even come an outing when a particular umpire doesn't reward him for nibbling around the edges. But Myers is mastering the art of getting better while throwing fewer strikes, which is practically impossible unless your name is Mason Miller. That's pretty good company to be keeping as far as relievers go.

 

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