New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom is expecting to make his next scheduled start on Monday evening at Citi Field against the Atlanta Braves.
“That’s the plan,” he said on Sunday after completing his between-starts work regimen that included playing catch on Thursday and Sunday, a touch-and-feel session on Friday, and a bullpen session on Saturday.
DeGrom was pulled early from his start on Wednesday in Chicago against the Cubs after dealing with shoulder soreness, cutting short a start that was off to a brilliant start as he retired the first nine he faced while striking out eight.
It was the third time this season that deGrom dealt with an injury issue. Two Fridays ago against the San Diego Padres he exited earlier because of flexor tendinitis in his right arm. In early May, he missed two starts due to right-side tightness that first began on May 4 when he was scratched from his start just hours before first pitch.
While the injured list was considered a legitimate option to ensure deGrom gets some extra time to get to 100%, a pair of opinions deterred the Mets from making such a decision.
“After going through, getting images on it, seeing the spot it was in and how it’s responded the past couple of days, I decided to try to proceed as normal,” deGrom said. “It felt like it’s nothing internal. It’s more muscular stuff. So we got it to calm down with the treatment we’ve been doing, and then throwing these past couple of days, it felt really good.”
Not exactly the best start to life as a 33-year-old, as deGrom celebrated his birthday on Saturday, but the Mets’ ace continues to get better as he seemingly continues to defy the laws of nature.
“No, I feel good,” deGrom said. “I’m going the other way.”
The numbers certainly back it up. DeGrom is having the greatest start to a season in MLB history, boasting a 0.54 ERA with 111 strikeouts in just 67 innings of work as he’s not only favored to win his third NL Cy Young Award, but is beginning to get serious consideration for the NL MVP Award.
