New York Mets Starting Pitcher Steven Matz To Miss Next Start

New York Mets starting pitcher Steven Matz will have his next start skipped because of left elbow tenderness.

The regular season is right around the corner and the New York Mets are already in midseason form, but not the midseason form you want to be in. The Mets have dealt with a number of injuries in recent seasons to key players and they have already begun for the upcoming 2017 season.

Starting pitcher Steven Matz has been scratched from his next start on Monday. He was scheduled to start in a minor league game, but is experiencing tenderness in his elbow and will not take the mound.

Since it is the final days of Spring Training before the regular season begins, Matz was expected to throw on the backfield of the team’s complex at Port St. Lucie. But, the elbow tenderness will throw off his schedule.

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General Manager Sandy Alderson said this has been a problem that Matz has dealt with for a period of time. He also added that Matz has not yet been sent for an MRI, so they do not believe it is a severe injury.

"“There’s a little irritation, and he’s got to work that out,” Alderson said on Sunday. “We don’t think it’s anything significant, but it bothers him on extension. He won’t pitch tomorrow, and we’ll see where that takes him over the next four or five days.”"

Matz has struggled this spring, and the elbow tenderness could be a contributing factor. He is 1-1 this spring with a 4.26 ERA and 1.58 WHIP in four starts, throwing 12.2 innings with seven strikeouts.

While the injury does not appear to be a serious issue, the Mets are worried because of Matz’s extensive injury history. Matz has been plagued by injuries throughout his professional career as he has never pitched more than 140 innings in a season. Last season Matz had bone spurs in his elbow that ended his season prematurely.

Matz has made only 28 starts in the major leagues in two seasons, so the injury concerns are real. The team hopes that he can provide them a full season’s worth of starts, but there is little to rely on that Matz is capable of staying healthy.

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The Mets begin their season on April 3rd against the Atlanta Braves at their new SunTrust Park. There are now serious questions to whether or not Matz will be joining them to start the season, or if he will be on the disabled list when things kick off next week.

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