Nate Lavender #94

Was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2024 Rule 5 Draft before being placed on the 60-Day Injured List and designated for assignment...He was then returned to the New York Mets...He is the son of Jim and Lisa Lavender...He also has one younger brother named Caleb...His father Jim and uncle, Darrin Fyre, played baseball at Marian College...His cousin, Ryan Frye, played baseball at Evangel University...Was a four-year letterwinner at El Paso Gridley High School...Finished with a 7-1 record and a 0.85 ERA during his high school career...Received both All-State and All-Conference honors for the 2017 season...Prep Baseball Report had him as the No. 5 left-handed pitcher in Illinois and the No. 11 overall prospect in Illinois by the end of his high school career...He golfed in high school and was a two-time conference champion...Over two seasons at the University of Illinois, he made 30 appearances and 13 starts...He finished with an 8-4 record, a 4.10 ERA (39 ER/85.2 IP) and 116 strikeouts...In 2021, he led the team in wins and strikeouts, and he was named to the All-Academic team in the Big Ten...He finished 2021 as the conference leader in strikeout/walk ratio (5.27).

2025

Missed the entirety of the 2025 season recovering from a variation of "Tommy John" surgery, where an internal brace was added to his elbow ligament.

2024

Made five appearances (one GS) with Triple-A Syracuse, posting a 3.86 ERA (7.0IP, 3ER)…placed on the 7-day IL on April 22 and transferred to the full-season injured list on May 15.…underwent an internal brace procedure later in May and missed the remainder of the season... On Dec. 11, was selected by the Rays from the Mets in the MLB Phase of the Rule 5 Draft.

2023

Split the 2023 season between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse...Combined to go 4-3 with a 2.98 ERA (18 ER/54.1 IP) with 26 walks and 86 strikeouts in 42 games... Recorded seven saves throughout the year....Spent seven games at Binghamton, before he was promoted to Triple-A Syracuse...Made his debut on May 5 with the Syracuse Mets...Tossed a season-high 3.0 innings on April 29 with the Rumble Ponies, striking out seven in the process.