Jonathan Santucci learned last year during his first professional campaign that a player isn't defined by what he does in April and May. The second-year hurler is following a similar pattern in 2026, much to his and the Mets' delight.
New York's No. 8 prospect struck out seven across six scoreless frames to continue his impressive June for Double-A Binghamton, which rolled past New Hampshire, 8-1, on Thursday night at Mirabito Stadium.
Santucci has quietly put himself in the conversation for the Mets' next wave of up-and-coming hurlers despite a rough April. The 23-year-old lowered his ERA in June to 2.16 across three starts, and going back further, he sports a 2.98 ERA in nine outings since May 2.
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Despite his success over the past six weeks, Santucci was coming off one of his shakier outings since April. The Massachusetts native allowed three runs and nine baserunners in four innings against Somerset (Yankees) on June 12. There was no such repeat against New Hampshire, which reached second base just once -- in the fourth inning -- against Santucci.
Mixing his mid-90s fastball and sharp slider, the Duke product scattered five hits and two walks, throwing 87 pitches (56 for strikes) en route to his second scoreless performance in four starts. Santucci generated 12 whiffs on 40 swings (30 percent) -- not an overwhelming number but coupled with his ability to induce weak contact played up against the Fisher Cats (Blue Jays).
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Santucci's performance through the first two-plus months of 2026 is eerily similar to how he kicked off his pro career. After not pitching 2024 after going in the second round of the Draft, Santucci posted an 8.14 ERA in his first six starts for High-A Brooklyn before finding a groove.
The 6-foot-2, 205-pounder went 9-0 with a 1.96 ERA, a 0.98 WHIP and held opposing batters to a .181 average across his final 19 appearances (17 starts), including 10 for Binghamton. Fast-forward to 2026 and Santucci again scuffled out of the gate, carrying a 5.57 ERA through his first six starts.
His turnaround began with a strong 6 1/3-inning effort against Hartford on May 8 and has rolled on through his latest outing, which lowered his ERA to 3.73, the lowest it has been all season.
While Santucci doesn't feature elite spin rates or upper-90s heat, he still has a knack for getting the punchout. He fanned 138 in 117 1/3 innings in 2025 and his 75 K's in 62 2/3 frames this season works out to a strong 10.77 K/9 ratio, a tick higher than his 10.56 mark a year ago.