Mets-Tigers preview

DETROIT -- Injuries are part of the game, but for the Detroit Tigers and New York Mets, they seem to be an everyday part.

One of the reasons Detroit didn't make any non-waiver trade deadline deals -- aside from having little to offer -- was the expectation of getting pitchers Jordan Zimmermann and Daniel Norris back from the disabled list along with right fielder J.D. Martinez.

They're all back now -- sort of.

Norris was taken off the disabled list -- and optioned to Toledo.

Zimmermann came off -- and got rocked in his first start. Now he's dealing with a bad right lat muscle that might land him back on the disabled list. More might be known after he throws a side session on Sunday.

Martinez came back as a pinch hitter and clubbed the winning home run on the first pitch he saw upon his return, then smoked a double on the first pitch he saw in his first start the following day.

The Mets will be missing a middle-of-the-order bat for two weeks (or maybe more) with outfielder Yoenis Cespedes going on the DL with a right quad issue he has been dealing with for three weeks.

That's not to mention problems with keeping their first basemen healthy and assorted injuries to other infielders and key rotation members.

"It seems like there's a night we pitch well and we don't hit," Mets manager Terry Collins said. "Then there's another night we score six and we win a game and the pitching's OK. The next night we don't hit again.

"It's certainly hard to understand why we're going like that."

New York will send right-hander Logan Verrett out to face Detroit for the first time when he starts Saturday night against the Tigers.

Verrett is 3-6 with a 4.20 ERA in 28 games with the Mets this season, including 10 starts. He has made four starts since the All-Star break with no decisions but a 3.86 ERA. He has 16 strikeouts and eight walks.

This will be his second straight start against an American League team, having allowed three runs in five innings against the New York Yankees in his most recent start.

Detroit left-hander Matt Boyd will be seeking a chance to prolong his time in the rotation when he starts against the Mets.

Boyd (2-2, 4.71 ERA) will be making his 10th start in 11 appearances with Detroit this season. He has done a decent job of filling in while Zimmermann and Norris recuperated.

It will be his first game against the Mets and only his second time facing a National League opponent. Boyd got two outs in relief in a game against the Cubs last Aug. 19 in Chicago.

Boyd has been inconsistent, tending to throw too many hittable pitches at some point in his most of his starts, but he did pick up a win in his last outing. He allowed three runs in five innings with a walk and six strikeouts against Houston on July 29.

Detroit has pulled within two games of first-place Cleveland in the American League Central after winning nine of 10 games while the Indians have cooled off.

"We want everyone to join us," Detroit second baseman Ian Kinsler said. "There's plenty of room on the bandwagon."