AROUND THE HORN
Mets: Mets ace Max Scherzer had his minor league rehab start with Double-A Binghamton pushed back a day to Wednesday, but New York manager Buck Showalter says there has been no setback in his recovery from a strained oblique. Scherzer will be pitching on seven days of rest after his first rehab start with the Rumble Ponies on June 21. Over the weekend, New York dashed speculation that the threetime Cy Young Award winner would be ready to return for Sunday’s game in Miami. The Mets instead announced the 37-year-old would pitch for Binghamton against the Hartford Yard Goats on Tuesday. Showalter said the Mets decided Monday that Scherzer should pitch Wednesday instead, citing discussions with Scherzer about how he felt and general caution with the nature of his injury. Dodgers: ESPN reported that 1B Freddie Freeman reportedly filed paperwork to terminate his relationship with his longtime agents at Excel Sports Management, saying in a statement his “representation remains a fluid situation” barely three months after he signed a six-year, $162 million contract with the Dodgers. The move served as the latest sign that the 32-yearold Freeman was seemingly unhappy with the way his free agency unfolded before the season, when the longtime Braves star failed to strike a new contract with his old team despite his publicly stated desire to remain with the World Series champs. Entering the offseason, the industry expectation was that Freeman would re-sign with the Braves. But when free agency resumed following the lockout’s end in March, negotiations between the
Braves and Freeman’s camp quickly fell apart. ESPN reported in March that the Braves had offered a deal of five years and $140 million, to which Freeman’s agents responded with two counterproposals, one for five years and another for six years, both for significantly more money. The two sides failed to find middle ground. And two days later, the Braves acquired All-Star 1B Matt Olson from the A’s, effectively eliminating any chance of Freeman returning to the only club for which he’d ever played. Freeman, the 2020 NL MVP, was hitting .304 with eight HRs and 46 RBIs in 72 games this season entering Tuesday night’s play.
Braves: All-Star closer Kenley Jansen was placed on the injured list with an irregular heartbeat. The 34-yearold Jansen has managed an irregular heartbeat for a long time. The Braves expect this to be a short IL stint. In 2018 while with the Dodgers, Jansen went on the IL with an irregular heartbeat Aug. 10. He returned after the minimum amount of time and pitched Aug. 20. Jansen in 2018 underwent a catheter ablation to correct a defect that triggered an irregular heartbeat. He also underwent a catheter ablation in the left atrium of his heart after the 2012 season. Jansen has 20 saves and a 3.58 ERA this season.
Extra innings: All-Star utility man Jeff McNeil was back in the Mets’ lineup for their game against the Astros after missing the last five games with tightness in his right hamstring. McNeil entered the game third in the NL with a .327 average. ... The Astros placed All-Star OF Michael Brantley on the 10-day IL with right shoulder discomfort. The 35-yearold is hitting .288 with five HRs this season.