New York Mets starting pitcher Jacob deGrom was removed from Friday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies due to lat tightness, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. It's unclear when he will return.
Continue for updates.
Collins Comments on deGrom Injury
Friday, April 8
"He's pretty stiff right now," Mets manager Terry Collins said, noting that it's a different injury than what deGrom dealt with in spring training, per Adam Rubin of ESPN.
DeGrom Becoming One of NL's Strongest Pitchers
DeGrom followed up his National League Rookie of the Year campaign from 2014 with another solid year as a part of a fearsome Mets pitching rotation.
The 27-year-old went 14-8 as the Mets' No. 2 starter behind Matt Harvey and posted a 2.54 ERA with 205 strikeouts on his way to his first All-Star Game appearance.
At the Midsummer Classic in Cincinnati, he stole the show:
He's just one of five possible starters who can throw over 95 miles per hour in the Mets rotation alongside Harvey, Noah Syndergaard, Steven Matz and Zack Wheeler, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery.
That pitching staff, minus Wheeler, was the foundation for a Mets team that came out of nowhere in 2015 to win the National League pennant before falling to the Kansas City Royals in the World Series.
Friday's start was deGrom's season debut. He tallied six strikeouts in six innings while surrendering one run and five hits.
With deGrom out, Syndergaard will take over the No. 2 role in the Mets' deep rotation, while Rafael Montero, one of the Mets' top pitching prospects, could make some spot starts.
In a reloaded National League East that expects to have the Mets battling the Washington Nationals for supremacy, a healthy pitching staff is needed if New York wants to make a repeat trip to the postseason.
Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.
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