New York Mets

New York Mets starting pitcher Max Scherzer is expected to miss six to eight weeks after suffering a "moderate to high grade" oblique strain during Wednesday night's start against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Scherzer removed himself from the game after he felt soreness on his left side. He hoped his decision to come out when he felt the pain would prevent a more serious injury.

"Just felt a zing on my left side and just knew I was done," he told reporters. "When I felt it, I just knew there's no way you can throw another pitch, so just get out of there."

New York manager Buck Showalter said Scherzer was also dealing with multiple blisters on his pitching hand during his last two starts.

It's the latest setback for a Mets rotation that looked like one of MLB's best coming into the year.

Jacob deGrom, the 2018 and 2019 NL Cy Young Award winner, has yet to start a game this season because of a shoulder injury suffered in spring training.

Tylor Megill, who'd compiled a 2.43 ERA through six starts before giving up eight runs against the Washington Nationals last week, was subsequently placed on the injured list with biceps tendinitis.

Taijuan Walker also spent time on the IL with a shoulder injury but returned in late April after missing just shy of three weeks.

Between Walker, Chris Bassitt, Carlos Carrasco and Trevor Williams, the Mets should still have enough starting depth to avoid a major drop-off, but the rotation's upside is obviously severely hampered without deGrom, Megill and potentially Scherzer.

David Peterson is an option to get called up from Triple-A if Scherzer lands on the IL.

The Mets own MLB's third-best record at 25-14, which also puts them six games ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies for the NL East division lead.

New York wraps up a four-game series with the Cardinals on Thursday before a six-game road trip with stops to face the Colorado Rockies and San Francisco Giants.

The New York Mets announced that right-handed starting pitcher Max Scherzer left his team's home game against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday with discomfort in his left side. He will undergo imaging on Thursday.

Scherzer left in the top of the sixth inning with the Mets up 5-2 after making his 87th pitch.

Anthony DiComo of MLB.com and Deesha Thosar of the New York Daily News provided more information.

Scherzer spoke with reporters postgame on the ailment.

Scherzer threw 5.2 innings, allowing seven hits and one earned run while striking out four. Adam Ottavino came on in relief.

The Washington Post's Chelsea Janes, who covered Scherzer when he pitched for the Washington Nationals, provided comments after he left the game.

"Don't want to speculate, but I will say that Scherzer does not pitch if he feels something he thinks means he's at risk of serious injury," Janes wrote.

"If the hamstring hurts too much to pitch with usual mechanics, he waits. If he can maintain mechanics, he pitches."

"All of which is to say my main read on this is whatever Scherzer felt, he felt it had gotten to the point that the next pitch carried a risk of something going very wrong."

Thosar also set the scene at Citi Field after Scherzer left:

SNY's Ron Darling also spoke on the televised broadcast soon after the injury (h/t DiComo).

"Everything about his being says, 'Gut it out.' So when he doesn't gut it out, it's a little scary."

Scherzer entered Wednesday with a 4-1 record and 2.66 ERA in seven starts. He's recorded 55 strikeouts in 44 innings.

The 15-year MLB veteran is in his first season in New York. He's a three-time Cy Young winner and eight-time All-Star who won the 2019 World Series with the Nats.

The Mets signed him to a three-year, $130 million contract before the season and has helped lead the Mets to first in the National League East with a 24-14 record.

The San Francisco Giants are reportedly in the market for starting pitching, and the Cincinnati Reds duo of Luis Castillo and Tyler Mahle could be in their crosshairs. 

"I'm hearing that the Giants are looking at the Reds' starters, Castillo and Mahle," Jon Heyman of the New York Post said on The Show podcast (25:15 mark). "I do think there is a possibility there. The Mets have scouted at least Mahle as well. We talked about the lack of depth of starting pitching with all of these teams—there's going to be a lot of teams looking at them. But to me, the Giants is a team to keep an eye on for Luis Castillo and Tyler Mahle."

Castillo, 29, is 0-1 this season in two starts with a 5.59 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and seven strikeouts in 9.2 innings. Shoulder soreness delayed the start of his regular season, and the 2019 All-Star is clearly still trying to find his mojo after a solid 2021 campaign (8-16 with a 3.98 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 192 strikeouts in 187.2 innings). 

"I thought I felt fine the whole game," Castillo told reporters after his start on Saturday. "My slider and changeup weren't working as well as I wanted them to, but everything else felt fine."

Mahle, 27, is 2-4 on the year with a 5.89 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 40 strikeouts in 36.2 innings. It's been a tough start after his fantastic 2021 showing (13-6 with a 3.75 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 210 strikeouts in 180 innings over 33 starts). 

With the Reds starting the year a woeful 9-26 and likely already out of the running for postseason consideration, barring an incredible turnaround, the buzz has already begun that the team could be sellers and their pair of starters would interest prospective buyers:

The Giants (21-14) and Mets (23-13), meanwhile, look like legitimate contenders, and bolstering the rotation would make sense for both teams. It wouldn't be surprising if both teams were indeed circling the floundering Reds, hoping to add some pitching. 

Los Angeles Angels star Noah Syndergaard is apparently a no-hitter absolutist.

Angels left-hander Reid Detmers tossed a no-no in the team's 12-0 home victory over the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night. Syndergaard celebrated his teammate's achievement by needling his former team:

The New York Mets had a combined no-hitter in their 3-0 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies on April 29. Five different pitchers contributed to the effort as starter Tylor Megill only went five innings.

While things didn't get too messy in public, the Mets and Syndergaard appeared to have a somewhat acrimonious divorce in the offseason.

The New York Post's Joel Sherman reported in November the 6'6" right-hander preferred to stay in New York. However, he "experienced radio silence from the only team for which he had ever played in the majors while other clubs began to woo him" after the Mets extended a qualifying offer.

And once the Angels tabled a one-year, $21 million deal, Syndergaard didn't grant the Mets an opportunity to match or exceed that offer. Based on recent events, he might still have some bitter feelings about how everything unfolded.

The New York Mets will be without manager Buck Showalter for Monday's game against the Atlanta Braves.

Mike Puma of the New York Post reported that Showalter was suspended for Monday's game and that pitcher Yoan Lopez was suspended three games for a pitch Major League Baseball determined was intentionally thrown at Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber.

Jon Morosi of MLB Network noted bench coach Glenn Sherlock will be the acting manager in Showalter's place.

The pitches in question happened during Sunday's game with the Mets leading by six runs. Lopez threw two pitches that were inside, which prompted umpire Jerry Meals to warn both teams since Philadelphia hit Francisco Lindor the previous half-inning.

Lopez then hit Alec Bohm with a pitch on the very next batter, although he was not ejected and the general consensus was that it was not on purpose.

​​"I don't know,” Schwarber told reporters when asked if he believed the right-hander was attempting to hit him. "He was keeping it down. He could have been just missing down and in. Same dude [that caused a benches-clearing brawl last week] in St. Louis. But I'm not here to say he was trying to hit me or to say he wasn't trying to hit me. I don't know. All I know is he got me out."

Lopez was also the pitcher during a benches-clearing incident in a game between the Mets and St. Louis Cardinals.

He threw a pitch near the head of Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado, who then started yelling at him before the benches and bullpens cleared. Arenado was suspended two games, while St. Louis relief pitcher Genesis Cabrera was suspended one game.

On Monday, the Mets announced they optioned Lopez to Triple-A Syracuse.

Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors explained the three-game suspension will go into effect when he is recalled to the major league level, although he can also appeal it. Lopez has a 9.00 ERA and 1.67 WHIP in three innings of work this season for New York.

The Mets won two of three against the Phillies and are in first place in the National League East at 16-7.         

The New York Mets announced Monday that veteran infielder Robinson Cano was designated for assignment.

Cano is owed $40.5 million combined for the 2022-23 seasons, as Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic noted.

The 39-year-old had a .195 batting average with just one extra-base hit—a home run April 15—through 12 games. The Dominican Republic native appeared in just two of the Mets' last six games, both starts at designated hitter.

Cano joined New York via a 2018 trade with the Seattle Mariners that also brought in closer Edwin Diaz for a package highlighted by outfield prospect Jarred Kelenic. The Mets also received $20 million to help offset Cano's contract, which had five seasons remaining of $24 million per year.

After struggling in his first year with the team, the second baseman fared well during the shortened 2020 campaign with a .316 batting average and 10 home runs in 49 appearances. He later tested positive for Stanozolol, a performance-enhancing drug, and was suspended for the 2021 season. 

It was the second PED suspension for Cano, who was also suspended 80 games in 2018.

The veteran completed his Mets career with 168 games across four seasons, producing a .269 average with 24 home runs.

It marked a steep decline from his production for the New York Yankees earlier in his career, when he hit .309 across nine seasons with at least a .300 average in seven of those years. Including his five years with Seattle, Cano had eight All-Star selections, two Gold Glove Awards, five Silver Sluggers and a World Series title in 2009.

He also finished in the top 10 of MVP voting in six seasons.

Even with that resume, his recent struggles could limit Cano's market going forward.

The Mets, meanwhile, will clear more playing time for J.D. Davis and Dominic Smith at DH, while Jeff McNeil and Luis Guillorme will spend time at second base.

MLB teams were required to cut their rosters from 28 players to 26 by Monday because of the latest collective bargaining agreement. The Mets also optioned pitcher Yoan Lopez to Triple-A to satisfy the requirement.

Five New York Mets pitchers combined to throw the second no-hitter in franchise history on Friday to cap a 3-0 home win over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Tylor Megill started the game and twirled five hitless innings with five strikeouts and three walks on 88 pitches. He handed the baton off to Drew Smith, whose struck out four in 1.1 innings.

Joely Rodriguez walked two in an inning of work but didn't allow a hit. Seth Lugo then worked two-thirds of a frame before closer Edwin Diaz fanned the heart of the Phillies' order  in Bryce Harper, Nick Castellanos and J.T. Realmuto to end the no-hitter.

Left-hander Johan Santana delivered the first no-hitter in franchise history when he beat the St. Louis Cardinals 8-0 on June 1, 2012.

The five Mets pitchers ended up striking out 12 on 159 pitches over nine innings of work.

At the dish, Jeff McNeil broke a scoreless tie in the fifth with a two-RBI single to score Mark Canha and Eduardo Escobar. Pete Alonso added an insurance run with a sixth-inning solo homer.

Jayson Stark of The Athletic provided some facts about the performance:

The Mets' effort marked MLB's first no-hitter this year.

The last no-hitter was also a combined effort when Corbin Burnes (eight innings) and Josh Hader (one inning) helped the Milwaukee Brewers beat Cleveland 3-0 last September.