Steven Matz scratched from start with elbow tenderness

Steven Matz won’t make his scheduled start in a spring training game tomorrow because of elbow tenderness. The Mets don’t think the injury is serious, though, and say they have been assured by doctors that Matz is not dealing with a ligament issue. And for what it’s worth, Matz himself told reporters that he isn’t concerned about the issue and plans to throw in some capacity tomorrow.

Over the course of his career, Matz has never stayed healthy for a full season. He threw 132.1 innings last year, his second-highest single-season total in his professional career, in 22 starts during the regular season. Bone spur surgery ended his year early, and Matz said this morning that could be related to what he’s feeling with his elbow now.

In a fully-healthy Mets rotation, Matz would figure somewhere into the middle or back of it. He had a 3.40 ERA and 3.39 FIP last year with 8.77 strikeouts and 2.11 walks per nine innings. In total, he has made 28 regular season starts in the big leagues and has a 3.16 ERA and 3.44 FIP.