Tylor Megill took a big step towards a potential late-season return on Tuesday.
The big Mets starting pitcher made his first rehab appearance down with Double-A Binghamton, though he wasn’t particularly sharp.
Megill retired the first two batters he faced, then struggled to put the inning away as the next two reached on a walk and single, but he punched out the cleanup hitter to escape without any damage.
He needed 23 pitches to battle his way through the opening frame.
Binghamton’s offense handed Megill a 3-0 lead in the bottom-half of the inning, and he picked up two more strikeouts in the second, but ended up being pulled after allowing a pair of singles.
Luis Moreno entered and retired the next batter easily to close his line with no runs allowed on three hits and a walk while striking out four in just 1.2 innings of work.
Megill did mix in his full arsenal as he threw 41 pitches, 27 of which were strikes.
The right-hander has been sidelined since the middle of June due to a right elbow sprain.
He was putting together another inconsistent campaign prior to the injury, pitching to a 3.95 ERA and 1.36 WHIP with 89 strikeouts across 14 big-league starts.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Mets utilize Megill when he is ready to return.
Frankie Montas' spot in the rotation is open at the moment with him sliding to the bullpen, but all signs point to the team calling up top prospects Brandon Sproat or Nolan McLean to jump into the mix.
Megill has just seven appearances in his career as a reliever.