Manager Terry Collins announced that right-hander Chris Young will make his long anticipated return to the rotation on Tuesday when the Mets begin a big three game series against the Nationals.
Young will be on a strict pitch count and is expected to throw between 80-85 pitches, with a limit of 90 according to Collins. Miguel Batista will also be back and will most likely back up Young after his day is done.
Young, who has missed the last 13 months after shoulder surgery, will be making his first start since May 1, 2011.
Additionally, Collins confirmed that R.A. Dickey will not pitch on short rest as he indicated yesterday, but will get his normal four days of rest instead. Jeremy Hefner will now get the start on Wednesday in his place. Apparently, Dickey was not thrilled about pitching on three days rest. I don’t blame him.
These moves mean that both Johan Santana and Jon Niese will get a full week of rest before making their next starts against the Yankees.
So here’s the rotation for the upcoming Nationals and Yankees series:
- Tuesday – Chris Young vs Nationals
- Wednesday – Jeremy Hefner vs Nationals
- Thursday – R.A. Dickey vs Nationals
- Friday – Johan Santana vs Yankees
- Saturday – Jon Niese vs Yankees
- Sunday – Dillon Gee vs Yankees
It kind of puts R.A. Dickey in the No. 1 spot in the rotation, followed by Santana, Niese, Gee and Young.
By the way, here is an SNY screenshot that shows how effective the Mets rotation has been in their last 14 starts in which they have gone 10-0.
Photo Credit: MetsBlog
