Wheeler concerned about pitching, not trade value

MINNEAPOLIS — Zack Wheeler is aware of the baseball calendar, but can only shrug at the mention of how his recent injury might affect the Mets’ plans.

The right-hander was placed on the injured list before Tuesday’s game with an “impingement” in his right shoulder and is unsure if he will be active by the time the July 31 trade deadline arrives. But even if he returns beforehand, his trade value may have plummeted enough that the Mets will end up keeping him.

Either way, Wheeler will have resolution on his status within the next two weeks.

“Honestly, sometimes you think about it, sometimes you don’t, so it can be bad timing,” Wheeler said, referring to his injury. “But I am trying to get out there as soon as I can. It doesn’t affect if I pitch sooner or pitch later, I am trying to pitch every fifth day. That’s my job, that’s what I want to do and it’s unfortunate it happened now, I guess, but I should be good to go.”

Wheeler indicated an MRI exam performed on his shoulder showed nothing of long-term concern. The earliest he can be activated from the IL would be July 23, which would potentially give him two starts to showcase for interested teams.

But given Wheeler’s health history, it’s also likely teams will be wary of trading for him. Wheeler missed 2015 and ’16 recovering from Tommy John surgery and had to be shut down halfway through the following year with weakness in his right arm.

Wheeler said he experienced discomfort during his start against the Yankees on July 2 and it persisted through his ensuing outing, on the Sunday before the All-Star break. In that start, Wheeler surrendered six runs over five innings against the Phillies. After that start, Wheeler said his shoulder got “a little too cranky” and he felt compelled to speak up.

“I’ve had impingements before, so I kind of knew what it was and this was a little more than other ones, but it doesn’t really scare me,” Wheeler said. “I had an MRI and it came back pretty much clean besides that, so I am just happy it’s nothing structural and you can deal with what I’ve got. I’ll be back in a short amount of time.”

Wheeler is 6-6 with a 4.69 ERA in 19 starts this season, and the Mets had been receiving phone calls in recent weeks from playoff contenders interested in his services. Wheeler would be a rental — he is an impending free agent — already lowering his trade value before the injury is even considered.