Jacob deGrom dealing with tight right shoulder, likely to miss today’s start

The Mets got some very unwelcome news on Thursday, one week before the scheduled start of the 2022. Buck Showalter revealed that Jacob deGrom is dealing with a tight right shoulder and will very likely miss his third and final spring training start later today. Tim Britton added that he will be re-evaluated in the morning, and this will determine whether he needs to go for an MRI.

deGrom last pitched on Sunday, when he went three innings and struck out five while allowing one run in a tag-team effort with Max Scherzer, who pitched the final six frames. The goal was to have him go four or five on Friday, which would leave him ready to throw about 75 pitches or so on Opening Day. With this news, it’s unlikely that will happen.

deGrom, who has been the best pitcher in baseball for the better part of the last four seasons, had his 2021 season derailed by injuries. He only ended up starting 15 games, and he made his final appearance of the season on July 8. He finished with a 1.08 ERA, a 1.24 FIP, and a 0.55 WHIP, with 146 strikeouts in 92.0 innings. The two-time Cy Young award winner owns a 2.50 ERA and has recorded 1,505 strikeouts over 198 starts during his career.