Before Saturday’s game against the St.Louis Cardinals, the New York Mets put reliever Drew Smith on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to Wednesday, and right fielder Starling Marte on the bereavement list. Infielder Mark Vientos and right-hander Dedniel Nunez were recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to fill Smith and Marie’s roster spots.
Smith first experienced tightness after last Saturday’s appearance against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He also experienced it on Tuesday after an outing against the San Francisco Giants. According to Dan Martin of the New York Post, an MRI revealed that Smith has inflammation in his right shoulder. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza doesn’t think that it’s anything serious.
"We don't anticipate this being long-term," Mendoza said of Smith. "Hopefully within the two-week span we'll get him back."
Smith is 1-0 this season with a 2.70 ERA, 1.70 WHIP, one save, and 11 strikeouts. He has given up ten hits and seven walks.
Marte went home to the Dominican Republic for family reasons. He is expected to miss three days. This season, he’s hitting .288 with four home runs, 12 RBIs, six stolen bases, and 16 runs.
Smith going on the injured list is worse for the Mets than Marte going on bereavement. The Mets will be just fine without Marte for a couple of days. However, Smith is just the latest victim in the Mets pitching injuries plague. Starter Kodai Senga won’t make his 2024 debut until late May or later, reliever Brooks Raley has inflammation in his left elbow, and pitcher Tylor Megill has a strained right shoulder. Pitcher injuries aren’t the only problem for the Mets, as they have had to rely heavily on their bullpen. For some reason, their starters are struggling to go deep in games, causing more work for relievers. Half of the eight relievers who broke camp in late March have been replaced due to injury or when fresh arms are needed.
Mets pitchers need to get healthy and stay healthy. Their starters need to go deep into games so they won’t have to rely on their bullpen constantly. If pitchers keep getting injured, then the Mets will not be in contention of making the playoffs.
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