For the New York Mets, it happened again Tuesday night; ace Jacob deGrom left a game with back tightness. The Cy Young Award winner has had recurring problems with back tightness going back to 2016. Tuesday night, it took only one inning for his back to go out of wack in one of the Met’s last intrasquad games.
In 2016, deGrom did exit his first start of the season early because of more tightness. In 2018, he had starts altered or pushed back because of recurring back problems. In neither case did it cause him to miss his first start of the season. In a 162 game season, missing a start of two might not be significant for the team. But missing one or two starts in a short season when he will have only eleven starts could be problematic to the season’s outcome.
Should the New York Mets be concerned, should they go cautiously with him going into the season, possibly limited his innings at the start? This is a question and one that will have to be answered quickly. The New York Mets will have two exhibition games with the New York Yankees, on July 18 at Citi Field and one at Yankee Stadium on Sunday. Their opening day will be next Friday the 24th against the Atlanta Braves in the Queens.
The fine line between the proper amount of caution and an overabundance of it is difficult to discern in any season; it’s even harder to figure out when the math is so different this year. And it just so happens that the Mets’ first test comes with their best player deGrom, the one they have signed long-term to a nine-figure contract. deGrom makes $25 million a year with the Mets. (increasing to $35MM next year).
“It’s a short season, it affects more — the percentage of games missed,†manager Luis Rojas said. “Injuries are going to play a big part in a short season like this.â€
deGrom back issues are not the only problem the Mets have with high paid players. Their second-highest-paid player is ex-Yankee Robinson Cano. He, in 2018 played in only 80 games due to injuries, and in 2019 he played in just a few more games, but with a concerningly low batting average of just .256 for their star player.
deGrom’s back issues have caused a problem for the New York Mets, he hasn’t been able to build up his arm. In Tuesday’s game, they had hoped that he build up to 60 pitches. Being taken out after only one inning didn’t allow that to happen, and now he is behind in his progress. deGrom is scheduled to take the mound at Yankee Stadium on Sunday. How far he goes in the game will have to be determined. If he is ready to go on opening day next Friday, he surely won’t be able to go deep into the game against the Braves.