Tony Plate - The Mets Place Jacob deGrom on the IL

PC - Ed Delany

The New York Mets placed Jacob deGrom on the injury list as a precautionary measure last Friday, because of elbow soreness. He played catch on both Saturday and Sunday, though, much to the surprise of some of the media.  

Since he was coming off the tremendous Cy Young season of last year, he needs to be more cautious. He was given the five-year S137.5 million extension and has been through Tommy John surgery, so he knows what is at stake. The Mets also, have to be cautious about deGrom and not overwork him. 

He underwent an MRI exam yesterday and the result was negative. deGrom then, went out and threw a 30-pitch bullpen session and reported no problems. He could start as soon as Friday against Milwaukee when he’s eligible to be activated.

Everybody in the Mets organization was relieved that things were fine with deGrom. When general manager Brodie Van Wagenen was asked what caused the pain in the elbow since the MRI did not show anything. 

He felt that the strep throat which led to the body feeling achy throughout the illness plus the discomfort all over his body was the reason for the pain. When it comes to the arm you try to become extra cautious. From that point after a couple of days the pain subsided. 

Van Wagenen felt the decision to put deGrom on the injured list was the right one instead of just pushing back his start until his elbow gets better. He felt the earliest day that deGrom would have thrown after taking two days off from his routine was Wednesday. It allowed the Mets not to play short-handed.

I look forward to deGrom’s next game against the very tough defending Central Division Champion Milwaukee Brewers. It will be interesting. 

My guess is the Mets will just let deGrom pitch five or six innings to play it safe. The starting pitching which is the strength of the Mets is currently struggling, however as a team they have been around first place during the first several weeks of the young season, mainly, because of their hitting.

In other news the Mets activated and welcomed Todd Frazier back to the lineup yesterday, but Justin Wilson was placed on the injured list with a sore elbow.