Mets' insane, brutal luck continues with Justin Verlander injury
The New York Mets' brutal injury luck continued on Thursday, as it was announced ahead of the season-opener against the Miami Marlins that stud offseason acquisition Justin Verlander is headed to the IL.
Fresh off his third AL Cy Young Award last year, the 40-year-old Verlander left the defending World Series-champion Houston Astros to sign with the Mets over the winter. Now, Verlander joins the likes of otherworldly closer Edwin Diaz and others on the shelf.
If there is any silver lining at all, "JV" doesn't think that the new issue is a serious one. He said that if it were later in the season or the Mets were playing in the playoffs right now, he likely wouldn't go on the IL.
Still, with Diaz all but certainly done for 2023 and fellow hurler and newcomer Jose Quintana's status up in the air, the Verlander news is crushing. Tons of pressure has now been added to Opening Day starter Max Scherzer and Japanese sensation Kodai Senga, who will head the much thinner rotation.
When the Mets signed Verlander, they were essentially replacing one ace with another. Longtime Mets star Jacob deGrom left Queens for the Texas Rangers in early December, just days before Verlander joined his new quad.
Now, while Mets fans wait to unveil their new co-ace, they were forced to watch their former franchise icon take the mound on Thursday when the Rangers hosted the Philadelphia Phillies on Opening Day.
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