The Mets finally got some good news on the starting rotation front on Wednesday, as an MRI showed no structural damage to David Peterson’s pitching shoulder.
Peterson, who was placed on the 10-day IL earlier this week due to shoulder fatigue, said on Wednesday that the MRI simply revealed “some minor inflammation.”
When Peterson was officially placed on the IL on Tuesday, the move was retroactive to Aug. 14, the day after his most recent start. The hope, then, would seem to be that Peterson would only have to miss two starts and be back in the rotation in the near future.
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But manager Luis Rojas wants to take things one day at a time and see how Peterson feels in the coming days before committing to when the rookie could make his return to action.
“Right now, it's treatment,” said Rojas. “Let the inflammation kind of go down and see where we go from there. It's basically what we're focusing (on) those first couple of days -- how he responds to just that rest that he's gonna get starting the whole process."
“That’s something that we’ll discuss in the next couple of days, but the nothing structurally wrong and just the minor inflammation is a good sign,” echoed Peterson. “I’m not worried about it, but we’ll see how the next couple days go.”
The 24-year-old has been a pleasant surprise in the Mets’ rotation this season, providing a steadying presence to a staff that is without Noah Syndergaard and Marcus Stroman for the rest of the season, while Michael Wacha is also currently on the IL.
Pitching to a 2.91 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP in his first four big league starts, Peterson has already proven the moment isn’t too big for him, and he’s eager to rejoin the rotation when able.
“The starts that I have already have been a good experience for me, and like I’ve said before, there were things to learn and things to take away that were positives,” Peterson said. “I don’t see this as a big block in the road. I’m going to take the experience that I’ve had and keep learning when I get back in the rotation.”