SURGERY FOR VARGAS
WILL START SEASON ON DL
PORT ST. LUCIE — The Mets will not escape spring training with their starting rotation unscathed.
Jason Vargas, who recently suffered a non-displaced fracture of the hamate bone in his right (non-pitching) hand, will undergo surgery, the team announced Sunday. The procedure is scheduled for Tuesday at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan and will involve the removal of the bone.
In a release, the Mets said Vargas will resume his throwing progression about five days after the surgery. But Vargas is expected to begin the season on the disabled list, allowing Zack Wheeler to claim the final spot in the Mets rotation.
The lefty Vargas suffered the injury Friday when he was drilled by a line drive in the right hand during a start in a minorleague game. The team said Xrays were negative, but a subsequent CT scan revealed the fracture in the hamate, which is located on the outside of the wrist near the pinkie.
The beneficiary is Wheeler, who has battled Steven Matz this spring for the final spot in the Mets rotation. The job was Matz’s to lose, heading to the final week of the Grapefruit League season, according to sources, based on the lefthander’s solid performances in his last two exhibition appearances after a slow start to the spring.
Wheeler was strong earlier in the spring, but fizzled against the Nationals in his most recent start.
Both Matz and Wheeler are scheduled for action Monday — the latter will pitch one inning in a simulated game. Manager Mickey Callaway indicated Wheeler will take Vargas’ turn in the rotation Thursday in an exhibition game against the Nationals.
Vargas signed a two-year contract with the Mets worth $16 million to provide the team with rotation depth after injuries depleted the pitching staff last season. Vargas, in his first full season back from Tommy John surgery, was an All-Star selection with the Royals in 2017 before fading in the second half. Overall, he was 18-11 with a 4.16 ERA and 1.330 WHIP in 32 starts for the Royals in 2017.
Barring another injury, the Mets’ big five — Noah Syndergaard, Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Matz and Wheeler — will pitch together in the same rotation for the first time. The Mets were set to break camp last season with that unit potentially together, when Matz was placed on the disabled list with elbow discomfort. By the time he resurfaced, Syndergaard was sidelined by a torn right lat. Harvey also spent significant time on the disabled list last season and Wheeler, who had returned after missing the previous two seasons rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, was shut down for the final two months with a stress reaction in his right arm.
Before Vargas’ injury, Mets brass was leaning toward Matz for the final rotation spot and weighing whether Wheeler would pitch from the bullpen or begin the season at Triple-A Las Vegas.
But Wheeler has been solid in three of his four Grapefruit League appearances, wowing team officials with his 97-mph fastball and sharp curve.
“I just think staying healthy has been the biggest thing so far,” Wheeler said. “That has been my biggest problem.”