Rafael Montero to start for Mets tonight

The rainy day in New York hasn’t officially cancelled the Mets game against the San Diego Padres at Citi Field tonight, but it has already shelved Jacob deGrom for the evening. Citing a fear of losing a deGrom start to a rain delay or in-game cancellation, Terry Collins announced that Rafael Montero would start tonight should the game take place, pushing deGrom back to the series opener in Pittsburgh Friday night against the Pirates.

Montero has struggled this year, posting an 8.10 ERA over 12 appearances. He has walked 14 and struck out 16 over 16.2 innings, leaving him with a decent 8.64 K/9 rate and a terrible 1.14 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The start would be Montero’s second of the year, as he surrendered five runs over 3.2 innings against the Marlins on May 5 in a game the Mets would ultimately win 8-7.

deGrom is now on tap to start the series opener at PNC Park in Pittsburgh tomorrow night, regardless of the disposition of tonight’s game.