Wheels up for Zack on mound
PORT ST. LUCIE − At least Steven Matz did not know what he was missing.
The Mets lefthander needed two years to get back from Tommy John surgery just like Zack Wheeler, suffering setbacks and wondering if he would ever return. In retrospect, however, Matz knows he had it easier than Wheeler the past two years.
“At that point, I hadn’t pitched professionally, let alone in the major leagues. I didn’t even know if I would make it there,” Matz said. “So, I had no idea what I was missing. I think it has to be harder to be comparing yourself to where you were. It would be hard to know what you are missing.”
Wheeler will get a small taste of what he has been missing on Friday. Wheeler, who has not pitched in the major leagues since 2014, will make his first Grapefruit League start in a split-squad game against the Braves in Orlando.
Dan Warthen said it is a huge mental hurdle that Wheeler needs to clear.
“Once you get through it and it feels OK and you come out of it, then you can breathe a little bit and get going,” the Mets pitching coach said. “It’s a matter of him getting out there and pitching and getting going. It’s a matter of him knowing it’s OK. We know it’s OK, the doctors say it’s OK, but until you go out and experience it, it’s hard to know.”
And it is hard for the Mets to know what they have in terms of their rotation yet. They are hoping Friday can make that picture a little clearer.
Not only is Wheeler facing big league hitters for the first time since Sept. 25, 2014, Matt Harvey is making his second start of the spring, coming off a concerning debut. Harvey, who was shut down in July last season for surgery to improve his circulation and correct his Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, struggled to command his fastball, which topped out at 94 mph. The next day, Harvey confirmed he was pitching with a stiff neck.
Warthen said that he has no concerns about Harvey.
“I am very happy with where he is. All of his other stuff is in order,” Warthen said when asked about the stiff neck. “Maybe it will be the end of spring training before we see high-end velocity, but he can pitch with where he is at right now.”
While Wheeler is expected to start the season in extended spring training, according to Mets sources, Harvey is part of the Mets’ plans to field one of the top rotations in baseball.
With four of the projected five starters coming off season-ending surgeries, including Wheeler in 2015, the Mets came into spring anxious to see if they would bounce back.
All four know that this team’s 2017 fortunes depend on the health of their arms. “We know what it would mean for all of us to be healthy, we can imagine what it would be like,” Matz said. “And that is what we focused on this spring, getting healthy, staying healthy and getting ready.”
Matz was fine Monday in his first start since surgery to clean out his elbow, and Thursday Jacob deGrom looked sharp in his second spring start since surgery on the ulnar nerve in his elbow.
But there are still questions surrounding Harvey, and especially Wheeler.
Wheeler had one rehab start in 2016, a rain-shortened 17-pitch minor league appearance before he suffered a flexor tendon/muscle strain that shut down his comeback attempt. Wheeler declined to talk about his start Thursday.
Terry Collins said there is some frustration and anxiety that the 26-year-old is going through.
“I talked to him last summer, when he came to Miami, he was real frustrated, things weren’t going his way. It seemed like every time he felt good... the next time he threw a side, something went wrong,” the Mets manager said. “There has always been something that kept him from making a huge step forward.
“We’ve got to be smart and know this is going to take a little bit of time,” Collins continued, “it’s going to take time to get him back to where he was.”
Friday, Wheeler takes another step back toward where he was and the Mets hope they will get clearer picture of where their rotation stands.