Mets add left-hander Zach Crotchfelt in the 14th round of the 2026 Draft

The New York Mets selected left-handed pitcher Zach Crotchfelt from Troy University with their 14th-round pick in the 2026 Draft, a move aimed at adding depth to their pitching pipeline. Draft profiles like this one often come down to two questions: whether a pitcher can miss bats consistently, and whether their command and run prevention hold up as the level of competition rises.

Crotchfelt, a native of Neptune, grew up in Jackson and attended Jackson Memorial High School. He was a three-year letterwinner there, missing the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. That gap is noted in his development timeline, but his overall high school production is captured in the profile through the way his later college seasons translated into effectiveness against increasingly advanced hitters.

At Troy, Crotchfelt compiled a 1.38 ERA over 117.2 innings, allowing 53 hits, walking 60 batters, and striking out 220. Those totals suggest a pitcher who can generate swings and misses while keeping runs down, though the walk numbers also indicate there is work to be done on day-to-day efficiency and pitching to contact. In his junior year, the profile lists a 0.85 ERA in 41.1 innings with 16 hits allowed, 23 walks, and 76 strikeouts, a clear statistical peak that helped establish him as a top draft prospect at his position.

His senior year continued to show strong run prevention, with a 1.07 ERA across 65.1 innings. In that season, he surrendered 33 hits, issued 30 walks, and struck out 130. For evaluators, those kinds of back-to-back sub-1.10 ERAs typically matter because they indicate the performance was not a one-year spike. The strikeout totals, especially when paired with the ERA, point to an ability to produce outs even without relying exclusively on low-hit variance.

The story also includes a family baseball thread. According to Crotchfelt family lore as presented in the draft profile, his great-grandfather was scouted by and signed with the St. Louis Cardinals, playing for the Cardinals' Class AAA farm club in the past. While that historical connection does not change the scouting process, it does explain why the profile frames this draft moment as more than just a transaction, emphasizing baseball continuity across generations.

For the Mets, the immediate impact is likely developmental rather than instant. A 14th-round selection typically enters the organization with an emphasis on refining mechanics, improving sequencing, and translating college-level results into professional settings where hitters are more patient and approach differences are stark. What to watch next is how his early pro workload is managed and whether the team can tighten his control enough to pair his swing-and-miss ability with even fewer free passes.