New York Mets starter Frankie Montas has been shut down from throwing and will remain so for the foreseeable future with a high-grade lat strain, manager Carlos Mendoza disclosed on Monday.
He will be shut down from throwing for six to eight weeks and then will need a proper spring training-like period to ramp back up for the 2025 season. The injury first arose after throwing his first side session of spring training on Feb. 12 when he complained of triceps soreness
“Trainers checked him out and decided that we had to take an image,” Mendoza said. “There was a lot of inflammation there. We had multiple doctors take a look at it over the weekend and that’s what they came up with.”
He was sent back to New York for a PRP injection.
The 31-year-old right-hander signed a two-year, $34 million deal to join the Mets in December, hoping to add depth to a tweaked rotation while building off his first full season since 2022.
The injury-riddled Montas was just the latest reclamation project brought in by president of baseball operations David Stearns, who helped Sean Manaea reach new heights while getting Luis Severino’s career back on track last year. While Severino used his one solid season in Queens to sign the richest contract in Athletics franchise history this offseason, Manaea returned to the Mets on a three-year, $75 million deal.
Montas, who is good friends with Manaea, went 7-11 with a 4.84 ERA and 148 strikeouts in 150.2 innings last season with the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers. It was the first time he pitched more than 150 innings in a season since 2021, the only other time he reached that mark in his nine big-league seasons.
During that 2021 season with the Athletics, Montas emerged as a potential top-tier starter in the majors, 13-9 with a 3.37 ERA, 1.182 WHIP, and 207 strikeouts in 187 innings pitched. He has a 4.43 ERA over the last three years.
His long-term absence now casts further uncertainty on a Mets rotation that was entering 2025 on shaky ground, regardless of their high expectations in 2025.
Kodai Senga is returning from a 2024 season in which he pitched just 5.1 regular-season innings due to multiple injuries, and Clay Holmes is transitioning from Yankees closer to Mets starter. The projected six-man rotation is also slated to have a competition for the No. 6 role between Paul Blackburn, Tylor Megill, and Griffin Canning — all of whom have been unable to find consistent success at the MLB level.
Whether Montas’ injury forces Stearns back into the market to bring in another arm remains to be seen.
“We know in order for us to get through 162-plus, we’re going to need eight to 10 guys,” Mendoza said. “Here we are. This is nothing new for us. Guys will step up, guys will get opportunities, and we feel good about the options that we got.”
