New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom has suffered a setback in his rehabilitation from forearm tightness and will be shut down for two weeks, GM Zack Scott told reporters, including Newsday's Tim Healey.. After that, deGrom will have to go through a ramp-up period before rejoining the rotation, pushing his expected return into September, in all likelihood.
DeGrom, 33, has been on the injured list for nearly two weeks because of the inflammation. In 15 starts this season, he's compiled a 1.08 ERA (363 ERA+) and a 13.27 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Unfortunately, deGrom has experienced several health-related bouts of turbulence this season, leaving multiple starts with some injury or another. He even missed a stretch in May because of what was described as right side tightness.
With deGrom remaining on the mend, the Mets will trot out a starting rotation that includes Marcus Stroman, Carlos Carrasco (making his season and team debut on Friday), Taijuan Walker, Rich Hill, and rookie Tylor Megill. The Mets acquired right-hander Trevor Williams from the Chicago Cubs as part of the Javier Báez trade on Friday, but it's unclear if they envision him taking a spot in the rotation, or simply providing length out of the bullpen.
The Mets have had all sorts of injury problems this season. Even now, their injured list includes a full rotation outside of deGrom, in Noah Syndergaard, David Peterson, Joey Lucchesi, Jordan Yamamoto, and Robert Stock. Overall, the Mets have lost the fourth-most days to injury among big-league teams, with the San Diego Padres leading the way, according to Spotrac.
The Mets entered Friday with a 54-47 record on the regular season, good for a 3 1/2-game lead in the National League East over the Philadelphia Phillies. The Mets will begin a three-game set against the Cincinnati Reds on Friday before jetting off on a seven-game road trip against the Miami Marlins and those aforementioned Phillies.
