All signs point to Friday start against Brewers
Go ahead and breathe a sigh of relief because the Mets finally shared good news in regard to Jacob deGrom. The reigning National League Cy Young winner received an MRI on Monday for his ailing right elbow and the results showed no structural bone damage, general manager Brodie Van Wagenen announced.
DeGrom has a throwing program in place while he recovers on the 10-day injured list. The 30-year-old threw a 30-pitch bullpen session following the MRI and is on track to make his next start against the Brewers on Friday at Citi Field.
“For Jacob, he’s very routine-oriented,” Van Wagenen said. “And when he was not able to throw on his regular routine, we felt better to get it checked out. We had very low level of concern originally and that was validated today.”
Before going on the injured list Friday (retroactive to April 16), deGrom had his fifth start of the season pushed back due to diagnosis of strep throat.
The Mets pointed to deGrom’s illness as a possible reason for his allaround muscle soreness, including the pitcher’s right-elbow irritation.
“His body was feeling achy throughout,” Van Wagenen said. “He felt muscle discomfort all over his body. But with the arm you always want to be extra cautious.”
DeGrom’s elbow issue was first revealed to the public prior to the Mets’ 5-4 victory over the Cardinals on Friday in St. Louis. Manager Mickey Callaway then announced an MRI would be forthcoming.
Despite the stiff elbow, deGrom continued to play catch this past weekend – much to the chagrin of Mets fans. Concern over whether or not the team was taking proper precaution with the pitcher’s elbow was running amok.
“I don’t know that there was really internal debate (on getting deGrom an MRI) as much as we were listening to the player and we were listening to the training staff,” Van Wagenen said. “And we wanted to make sure we were smart and prudent. That’s why we put him on
the IL in the first place.”
DeGrom underwent Tommy John surgery on the same ailing right elbow in 2010. He suffered a setback in September 2016 and endured another surgery due to ulnar nerve damage in his right arm.
Following a historic Cy Young season, deGrom has been erratic on the mound of late.
The right-hander has surrendered five home runs over his last two starts and has seen his ERA jump to 3.68. DeGrom has issued seven walks across 22 innings and opposing batters are slashing .342/.419/.816 with a 1.234 OPS against him in the past 14 days.
The ace’s performance this season is only a focal point of the struggling Mets’ staff. As a team, the Mets entered Monday with the worst ERA (5.57) in the NL and the third-worst ERA in the league, behind the Orioles and Red Sox.
It’d be in the Mets’ best interests to lock down a backup arm for the rotation as the team navigates through a tough start to the season. Favorably, an All-Star pitcher threw his hat into the free-agent ring prior to the Mets’ game against the Phillies.
Left-hander Gio Gonzalez broke his ties with the Yankees on Monday. He opted out of his one-year, minor-league contract with the Bombers on Saturday, and the Yankees had 48 hours to add Gonzalez to their major-league roster. Instead, they granted his release.
Gonzalez also left his agent, Scott Boras, on Friday afternoon and signed with CAA – the previous employer of Van Wagenen. The Mets are rumored to be pursuing Gonzalez, though nothing has been made official yet.
The 33-year-old Gonzalez has spent 11 years in the big leagues, splitting time with the A’s, Nationals and most recently, the Brewers. He sports a 3.69 careerERA across 307 starts. Gonzalez is a two-time All-Star and finished third in NL Cy Young award voting in 2012 for a league-leading 21 wins during his first year with the Nationals.