Jacob deGrom has been sent back to New York for further rehab and evaluation on his forearm, but Mets acting general manager Zack Scott doesn’t believe the injury to be a severe one.
The New York ace was placed on the 10-day IL, retroactive to July 15, with right forearm tightness, a discomfort that continued in his last bullpen before he was bumped from his scheduled start on Monday. But Scott told Audacy MLB insider Jon Heyman and Cody Decker that the team isn’t worried about a potential long-term injury.
“Jake has a mild, some tightness in his forearm,” Scott said on the latest episode of Audacy’s Big Time Baseball podcast. “It’s pretty mild. We’re not too concerned long term. When he’ll be back, it could be pretty quick, but it all depends on symptoms. He’ll take a little time to rest it, let the inflammation go down, and then start to ramp it up.”
DeGrom has dealt with a handful of minor injuries already this season, from side soreness to flexor tendonitis and shoulder soreness. He attributed the injuries to batting and letting his pitching mechanics get out of whack, but nevertheless, he has still put together a historic season, holding a league-leading 1.08 ERA. But with Noah Syndergaard, Carlos Carrasco, Joey Lucchesi, David Peterson and Corey Oswalt all out with injuries, the Mets could use all the rotation help they can get to maintain their lead in the NL East, especially from the best pitcher in baseball, however soon he can return.
“I don’t expect it to be a long IL stint, but it’s always hard to predict these things because it’s all symptom based,” Scott said. “Nothing structurally concerning when you look at an MRI or anything like that.”
Manager Luis Rojas told reporters on Tuesday that those symptoms have been improving, and his range of motion has increased while the tightness has decreased. DeGrom hasn’t resumed throwing yet, but there is still optimism that it won’t be long before he is back on the mound, where he hasn’t been for the Mets since July 7.
“It’s kind of similar to things he’s had before when there are mild strains or inflammation and things like that, and he’s been able to return quickly,” Scott said.
Listen to the full interview with Scott and the full episode of Big Time Baseball below!
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