The Mets avoided another pitching disaster Wednesday when they received more clarification on Christian Scott’s sprained ulnar collateral ligament. Though the club did not elaborate on the severity of the sprain, the good news is that the rookie right-hander will not need surgery on his injured elbow.
Scott will be shut down for two weeks and then he’ll ramp up for game action again. He has every intention of pitching again this season.
“It’s better than the worst case scenario, which is awesome,” Scott said Wednesday at Yankee Stadium. “It’s a sigh of relief right now. I definitely felt a little tight after the Marlins outing but the team has done an unbelievable job of testing me out and being able to talk to doctors and the training staff. I feel really comfortable about the position I’m in right now.”
Having sprained his UCL last season in the minor leagues, the 25-year-old is undaunted by the prospect of another one. He returned to pitch again after 21 days last season and expects the time period to be about the same again this year, but at the moment it’s tentative.
“We have to weigh the next two weeks and see how he progresses when we start building him back up,” said manager Carlos Mendoza. “But from what I was told talking to the trainers and even to Scottie, we feel pretty good with him being back here at some point before the year’s over.”
Scott has gone 0-3 with a 4.56 ERA over nine starts this season. At times, he’s been dominant; other times, it’s clear that a learning curve still exists. The Mets optioned him to Triple-A Syracuse earlier this season to be able to manage his innings, but when Edwin Diaz was suspended and Tylor Megill struggled, a transaction was necessary and the Mets called him back up.
He pitched 4 1/3 and 4.0 innings in each of his last two starts, giving up three earned runs on seven hits in both. His last time out he pitched in Miami, near where he grew up, for the second time this season, which is when he felt the familiar tightness in his elbow.
The Mets sent him for imaging Tuesday when the team returned home from Miami. He’s thrown 89 2/3 innings this season, the most he’s ever thrown as a pro. The Mets have been adamant about making sure they manage his workload without putting a hard cap on his innings.
With Kodai Senga returning Friday to face the Atlanta Braves, the Mets will expand the rotation to six starting pitchers. That leaves a hole in the schedule Saturday, when Scott was supposed to take his next turn. Right-handed long reliever Jose Butto could get a start, but the Mets can’t commit to using him at the moment since they might have to use him out of the bullpen this week.
Calling up Megill from Triple-A Syracuse is the most likely option.
As for whether or not there is concern about Scott injuring his UCL for the second summer in a row, the pitcher himself doesn’t seem worried. It’s a sad reality of today’s game that Tommy John is almost an expectation at some point.
The Mets already lost relievers Drew Smith and Brooks Raley to UCL correction surgery (internal brace).
“I don’t know for sure,” Scott said. “Last year it happened and I didn’t have any problems with it afterwards. This time, it happened again at the same time, which is obviously frustrating.I want to be able to to come out and help this team compete and win a World Series. I can’t do that throwing eight innings and being shut down in August.”
TRAINER’S ROOM
Right-handed reliever Sean Reid-Foley (shoulder impingement) will throw live batting practice Thursday at Citi Field before beginning a rehab assignment Sunday. He was previously slated to pitch Thursday for High-A Brooklyn, but the Mets decided to push the assignment back after he struggled with his mechanics when throwing to hitters for the first time.
The Mets are unsure how many rehab appearances Reid-Foley will need, but he’ll have 30 days from Sunday to complete the assignment. The Mets are hoping to have him back ahead of those 30 days.
LOCKING IT UP
Carson Benge, the two-way sensation out of Oklahoma State the Mets drafted in the first round last week, signed his contract Wednesday and will visit Citi Field on Thursday. Benge was drafted No. 19 overall. The slot value at 19 is $4.22 million, but his signing bonus is not yet known.
