The Mets placed starting pitcher Jacob deGrom on the 10-day injured list Thursday ahead of their Opening Day tilt with the Nationals.
The New York ace suffered a stress reaction in his right scapula toward the end of spring training, so his appearance on the injured list to begin the year does not come as a surprise. Despite only being on the 10-day injured list to start the year, deGrom won’t resume throwing for at least a month, the team announced on April 1.
With fellow Cy Young winner Max Scherzer also missing Opening Day with a hamstring “hiccup” that he suffered towards the end of spring training, the Mets will roll with Tylor Megill in the first game of the season against the Nationals.
As for deGrom, the stress reaction in his shoulder is the latest injury to affect his availability at the top of the New York rotation. He missed the second half of last season after spraining his right throwing arm in early July. In 15 starts, deGrom went 7–2 with a 1.08 ERA, 0.55 WHIP and 146 strikeouts. When healthy, he was as dominant as ever.
On paper, the Mets had two of the top pitchers in the game heading into the season, but with both battling injuries out of the gate, it could be tough sledding for New York’s rotation in the first couple months of the season.
