QUEENS — Jose Quintana and his manager Buck Showalter might not necessarily be on the same page regarding the veteran left-hander’s long-awaited Mets debut this season.
The 34-year-old starting pitcher, who has been working his way back from rib surgery in March, declared that he only needed “probably one more,” minor-league rehab start while getting stretched out to 70 pitches before making his first start with the Mets after signing a two-year, $26 million deal in the offseason.
“I’ve been feeling nothing the last three, four days,” Quintana said before the Mets’ series opener against the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday. “I’m very excited. I’ve been working so hard to be in this position.”
Quintana threw 47 pitches with the Single-A Brooklyn Cyclones on Sunday, allowing one run on two hits with five strikeouts across four innings.
But with a perceived mandate of 70-75 pitches needed before joining the Mets, manager Buck Showalter didn’t share the same enthusiasm as Quintana.
“I think it’s more around 60 [pitches for his next rehab start] but if I know Q, he’s hoping that because he wants to get back yesterday,” Showalter said. “Seventy seems a little ambitious… I’d be surprised. Forty-five to 70… it’s usually about 15-pitch increments”
There also seems to be some uncertainty about what the exact benchmarks are for Quintana to hit in his final rehab work.
If the Mets prescribe a five-inning limit for Quintana in his debut, his return could come sooner. If they want him to potentially go more than that, the date could be moved back.
Regardless, it’s centered right around the All-Star break, which runs from July 7-13.
“It depends on how loaded we want him to be when he comes back,” Showalter said. “Do we want him to be able to pitch five innings only, six innings only? … You can do the math, but that’s either pre-All-Star break or right at the end of the All-Star break or after the All-Star break. There are three dates there potentially.”
