Mets pitcher prospect Dominic Hamel in control now

Dominic Hamel needed to return to what he did best — just pitch.

Hamel, a 6-2 righthander selected by the Mets in the third round of the 2021 MLB Draft, said he felt he was putting too much pressure on himself at the beginning of his professional career. He was trying to be too precise with every pitch and this was having a negative effect on his performance.

He struggled in his first five starts in 2022, especially with his command. And for someone who describes himself as a “strike-thrower,” walking 14 batters in 19 innings was unacceptable.
“I was trying to be too perfect with my pitches,” Hamel said. “And once I got grounded and realized where I was at and I just needed to fill up my zone with my best stuff, I kept rolling with it."

Hamel had a 4.74 ERA with a 1.64 strikeout-to-walk ratio through his first five starts with Single-A St. Lucie. But he’s been much stronger since pitching to a 3.53 ERA with a 3.2 strikeout-to-walk ratio with 15 walks in 44 1/3 innings in his final nine outings for St. Lucie.

"I’ve definitely made those adjustments to allow me to be in the zone more and attack hitters and now I’m pitching my game to them,” Hamel said. “I’m not out here trying to find more stuff about myself out. I went through my college career and know what’s good for myself and I’m sticking to my plan now."

Hamel, 23, was promoted to High-A Brooklyn July 4 and in his Cyclones debut July 9 he allowed three runs with two walks and seven strikeouts in four innings.

Hamel, the organization’s No. 9 ranked prospect and the second-highest ranked pitcher by MLB Pipeline, said he felt he was “selling out” to the strikeout early this year. It made him fall behind in counts. But with just going back to his roots by throwing strikes and relying on his above-average fastball, slider and curveball, Hamel has turned his season around.

“It’s just flowing, it’s like second nature almost,” Hamel said. “I want to keep the pressure on (the hitter). I’ve shown I can attack the zone in any count so you better do something early off me so that’s just really helped my game flow.”

Hamel also utilizes analytics to his advantage. He has strong spin rates on his fastball, curveball and slider and although he said data isn’t “everything,” he likes being able to look at the numbers to get a better feel for his pitches.

"I just continue to remain conscious about it and know what works best for me,” he said. “It’s something that took time but I’m happy with that kind of adaptive mindset I have now to be able to read information and tweak myself if needed to get to a better spot."

Hamel is with his progression with the Mets, but isn’t satisfied.

"This isn’t the end," Hamel said. "We are just getting started so I’m not going to get too caught up in this one call-up. I’m very excited and very grateful to be here but I still have a mission to accomplish."