Mets' Alderson Details Latest on deGrom Injury

If you thought the Mets season couldn't get any more bizarre, well, it did on Tuesday. 

A day after the Mets gut-wrenching 4-3 loss to the Nationals amid another Edwin Diaz implosion, Team President/Acting General Manager Sandy Alderson revealed that Jacob deGrom's mysterious elbow injury that has led him to miss the last two months is a sprain/partial tear of the UCL in his right elbow. 

Just the words "tear" and "UCL" is enough to make Mets fans panic. Typically this is the kind of diagnosis that would lead to Tommy John Surgery, but Alderson said that such an extreme measure wouldn't be necessary.

"This is a very low grade thing that has resolved itself," Alderson said. "The ligament is perfectly intact at this point. Whatever condition existed before has resolved itself and that is one of the reasons he didn't pitch for a period of time." 

 Just the fact that the Mets hid the fact that deGrom had some form of structural damage should raise eyebrows. He is the best pitcher on this team, if not baseball when healthy. It is even fair to argue that he is the Mets most important commodity.  Yet, this franchise couldn't give a proper diagnosis for months on end. 

There is still question as to whether deGrom will  even pitch again this season. He has done some tossing on the side, and according to Alderson the Mets plan to "ramp" him up in order to if the injury relates more to mechanics in someway. That in itself is a huge gamble. And knowing the Mets history with injuries, not one they should take. 

If deGrom needs to rest for the rest of the year, they should let him and not risk further injury. 

This comes from a team that is dealing with so much turmoil right now. Yes, the Mets (70-69) are still very much in the mix for the postseason, but the deGrom injury, coupled with front office shakeups at General Manager, and an owner who has become a complete a total distraction with his incessant tweeting  and challenges to the fanbase, one has to wonder when the circus leaves town.