According to Jon Heyman of Today’s Knuckleball, Mets left-hander Steven Matz was leaning toward surgery to remove the bone spur in his elbow before a recent meeting with team brass.
Heyman credits Matz’s courage for pitching through pain since at least May 12, and for going out there again tonight.
“It’s a gallant change-of-heart by Matz, the hometown kid who doesn’t want to disappoint. But surgery remains a viable option if he continues to feel such pain. He got one cortisone shot already, but at some point, enough is enough. He’s already taken one for the team.”
GM Sandy Alderson told reporters on Tuesday that pitching with the bone spur will not make things worse, but that it comes down to how much pain Matz can tolerate.
Surgery would wipe out the remainder of the season for Matz. But either way, Matz will likely have the spur surgically removed at the end of the season.
Original Report – June 27
According to Mike Puma of the New York Post on Twitter, Steven Matz is dealing with a bone spur in his elbow.
Matz, 25, has pitched to a 7-3 with a 3.29 ERA this season, but imploded in his last start against the Braves, in which the Long Island native let up six runs in the fifth inning and was chased from the game.
When asked about his elbow after his start in Atlanta, Matz said: “It’s been tight, but it’s fine,” according to reports.
Matz first reported elbow tightness after his start against the Braves at home on July 19th, but threw a bullpen session several days later and felt fine.
The good news with this situation is that there is no structural damage to Matz’s elbow, and no surgery is required for the bone spur.
The bad news is that Matz can either pitch through this and take a hit both mentally and physically, or he can land himself on the disabled list, which is not being ruled out.
Mets manager Terry Collins told the media in Washington this afternoon that he is not certain Matz will make his next start now, so we will keep you up to date as more reports come in.
