Jacob deGrom to Pitch for Syracuse Before Potential New York Mets Return

Jacob deGrom's next rehab start will be with Triple A Syracuse this Wednesday, as the Mets announced on Monday evening.

DeGrom pitched into the fifth inning of a simulated game in Port St. Lucie last Thursday, striking out 10 of the 13 batters he faced on 60 pitches.

The Mets ultimately decided to give deGrom, who has yet to make his regular season debut this year, a fifth rehab start in order to stretch him out more, before returning to the big-leagues.

In addition to increasing his pitch count, general manager Billy Eppler revealed that the Mets wanted to increase deGrom's intensity/competition level prior to activating him from the IL. As a result of the minor league All-Star break last week, deGrom had to toss a sim game as his fourth rehab start.

DeGrom has not pitched in a regular-season game since July 7, 2021 due to elbow and shoulder issues. But the good news is that he potentially has one more step, before snapping this streak and returning to a Mets rotation, which has been stellar as of late. If all goes well, deGrom could make his return on August 1 or 2 in D.C. when the Mets take on the Washington Nationals, right before the trade deadline.

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