WASHINGTON — There is a decent chance Jonah Tong joins the New York Mets in Miami for their series against the Marlins over the weekend, though in what capacity remains unknown.After the Mets’ 8-4 loss to the Washington Nationals on Wednesday, the expectation was for Tong to fly to Miami after throwing in Syracuse, N.Y., on Thursday. If the Mets get rained out in Washington on Thursday, however, he’d stay with Syracuse. If the Mets play Thursday, there’s a good chance Tong pitches for them Friday against the Marlins.There are a handful of ways they can go with Tong, their top pitching prospect, for Friday’s game. In the middle of a stretch of 16 straight days with a game, the Mets may choose to insert a sixth starter into their rotation with Tong looming as a serious possibility. Or they could use him as a bulk pitcher behind an opener.Tong was scratched from his originally scheduled start for Triple-A Syracuse on Wednesday.“We’re keeping him in play,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said.New York’s starters have been stressed by this long stretch without an off day, which is why the Mets are considering bringing up Tong to give everyone an extra day. If Thursday’s game is rained out, it would allow the Mets to push their starters back a day anyway, likely removing the impetus to recall Tong. David Peterson is slated to start Thursday.In nine starts at Triple A this season, Tong holds a 5.68 ERA. His 32.7 percent strikeout rate ranks among the top in the minor leagues. But the impressive strikeout figure comes with a 14.3 percent walk rate, which ranks among the worst in the International League.The Mets rushed Tong, 22, up to the majors last season after just two starts in Triple A because they were desperate for help in their rotation. His stint in the majors did not go great. Over five starts with the Mets, he threw just 18 2/3 innings and had a 7.71 ERA. It was an aggressive assignment for someone who had thrown just 9 1/3 innings above Class A the year prior.From a pure stuff perspective, some evaluators remain quite impressed with Tong. Tong led minor-league baseball last season with 179 strikeouts. In his last start, on Thursday, Tong threw as hard as 97.9 mph. He pairs his fastball with a changeup. The Mets have continued to work with him on breaking balls.“There’s no denying that he’s been inconsistent,” Mendoza said. “But we also like how he bounces back.”After Clay Holmes (fractured fibula) hit the injured list over the weekend, the Mets’ rotation is not providing much length. At the time of his injury Friday, Holmes led New York in innings.Nolan McLean’s 5 2/3 innings Tuesday (he allowed nine runs, six earned) marked the longest outing from a Mets starter since Holmes’ injury. In the first turn without Holmes, Peterson covered four innings pitching after an opener, Freddy Peralta threw five and Christian Scott completed four. Rookie left-hander Zach Thornton tossed 4 1/3 innings in his major-league debut Wednesday night.After pitching on back-to-back days, A.J. Minter (hip, lat) is scheduled to make one more appearance for Triple-A Syracuse over the weekend. If he recovers well, Minter could come off the 60-day injured list when the Mets return to Citi Field early next week, Mendoza said.First pitch for Syracuse was 11:05 a.m. Wednesday after a night game Tuesday.“That goes to show you he is feeling pretty good,” Mendoza said.One key element in the Mets’ consecutive extra-inning wins earlier this week? Some game-saving defensive plays at first base from Mark Vientos and Brett Baty.On Sunday against the Yankees, with runners at the corners and one out in the 10th inning, Vientos was playing even with the bag at first. He snagged Austin Wells’ groundball and swiftly threw to second and got back to the first-base bag for the 3-6-3 inning-ending double play.One night later in the 10th, with the speedy Nasim Nuñez batting with the bases loaded and one out, Vientos was positioned similarly. But on a similar groundball, he came home with the throw rather than risk going for the double play. That kept the score tied. (Vientos nearly started a 3-2-3 double play on it, but Hayden Senger decided against trying to get Nuñez at first.)Baty had moved over to replace Vientos at first in the 11th. In his first action at first base in more than two weeks, Baty made a terrific scoop on Huascar Brazobán’s low throw to start the inning. And Baty’s decision to risk throwing out the lead runner on a José Tena groundball saved the game for the Mets. Baty’s throw just snuck around Joey Wiemer’s shoulder to get the out at second. One batter later, Jorbit Vivas doubled. Had Baty taken the sure out at first, Vivas’ double would have scored Wiemer with the winning run.“That’s a testament to Brett’s willingness to continue to stay ready to play secondary positions,” bench coach Kai Correa said. “He still works at second base, he still works in the outfield. If you do those things a little bit every day, you’ll be less surprised when you’re out there.”What tied all those plays together, in Correa’s eyes, was decisiveness. That’s something the Mets worked on throughout the spring, with Correa’s drills designed not just to practice the execution of certain plays, but also to stress the players’ decision-making process.“Exposure to those types of decisions creates certainty,” Correa said. “And when you’re decisive, you’re more likely to do the thing physically correct. That’s where I’m most proud of those guys.”For the season, the Mets have not been strong at first base defensively, coming in at six outs below average entering Wednesday. (Pete Alonso, for context, has been rated three runs above average this season, a big improvement from being nine runs below average with the Mets in 2025.) For what it’s worth, defensive runs saved has the Mets’ first basemen saving two runs, the same as Alonso’s Orioles.On Tuesday, the Mets made the unusual move of adding left-handed reliever Anderson Severino to their 40-man roster but not to their active, 26-man roster. Why?The minor-league deal Severino signed with the Mets in the offseason contained a foreign inquiry clause: If a team in Asia expressed interest in signing him and Severino returned that interest, the Mets could keep him in the organization only by placing him on the 40-man roster. That dynamic played out last week with a team from Japan pursuing Severino. By placing him on the 40-man roster, the Mets retain Severino as a depth option from the left side.It’s not uncommon for minor-league deals to include this specific clause. What’s less typical is the inquiry happening in the middle of the regular season. Most times, a player who signs a minor-league deal early in the offseason might garner interest later that winter overseas.The 31-year-old Severino hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2022 with the Chicago White Sox. He’s off to a nice start for Triple-A Syracuse this year, with a 0.98 ERA over 18 1/3 innings.