If the Mets’ 20-2 drubbing at the hands of the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday night wasn’t bad enough, they received further insult to injury when the injury bug reared its ugly head into the club’s starting rotation — again.
Struggling sophomore southpaw David Peterson was lifted from his start early Wednesday in the fourth inning with what is being described as right-side tightness.
It’s a similar issue that was plaguing Mets ace Jacob deGrom earlier this season, but while the best pitcher in baseball only missed limited time, the initial prognosis on Peterson isn’t necessarily promising.
The Mets have already determined that Peterson will not make his next scheduled start, which was projected to come next week against the Milwaukee Brewers. But an official timetable is unknown as the Mets will wait for further testing when the team returns to New York from Atlanta, per Mike Puma of the New York Post.
Putting Peterson on the shelf would further sap a starting rotation that is practically being held together by duct tape. While deGrom’s limitations were lifted after dealing with three separate injuries dating back to May, Marcus Stroman recently dealt with a hip issue while Joey Lucchesi is set to undergo Tommy John surgery. Jordan Yamamoto is also on the long-term IL with a shoulder injury.
Both Lucchesi and Yamamoto were acquired during the offseason for depth purposes. They were immediately utilized, too, when Carlos Carrasco tore his hamstring late in spring training while Noah Syndergaard continued his rehab from Tommy John surgery.
Neither has yet to return to the team and might not be available until September.
Jerad Eickhoff has stepped in to plug the holes in the rotation but was designated for assignment earlier this week. Should Peterson hit the IL, the Mets will only have deGrom, Stroman, Taijuan Walker, and Tylor Megill available to start.
