Michael Wacha was the star of the show during the Mets’ Thursday sim game, as he was virtually untouchable to the point where the team added extra outs during some innings to keep his pitch count up.
But it was another starter who was the star of manager Luis Rojas’ postgame press conference.
Rojas made a point to update the status of right-hander Jacob deGrom during his Zoom call with reporters, saying that deGrom responded well to treatment and was able to have a catch in the outfield following his MRI on his back.
“I know we spoke this afternoon about Jake a little bit. Afterwards we went out for BP and Jake was able to play catch. Came out really good from treatment, response was good, and per our performance staff and our communication, Jake was able to play catch today and felt good,” Rojas explained. “So, it was a productive day as far as that. I know we were waiting on that feedback from the treatment, and it was a good one, so it’s a good day.
“I spoke with him when we were out there on the field … he said he feels good, feels (looser). He had a little tight muscle there but he felt more loose today. He was able to finish on his throws. Then he was in here later and he said it was a good day, he was really happy with the progression and the daily approach.”
Rojas said that the day-to-day approach will stay in place, and the Mets manager wouldn’t commit to whether or not deGrom would be able to throw a bullpen session on Friday.
“It’s still a day-to-day approach, but we’re really pleased with today,” Rojas said. “He was able to go out there and throw after treatment, so let’s see how he responds to tomorrow’s treatment and what he’s able to do.”
DeGrom spoke to reporters earlier in the day on Thursday, saying that he’s felt “really good” the last two days and that the goal was for him to throw off the mound on Friday.
And while the Mets may have been playing things safe earlier in the day when they didn’t seem to want to say too much regarding the two-time Cy Young-winner’s health, Rojas seemed to indicate at the end of the night that all signs were pointing in the right direction toward having deGrom ready for Opening Day.
“It was a productive day for him for sure,” Rojas said. “The concern got out of the way with the results from the MRI, and now going through treatment and being able to also feel looser from the muscle tightness standpoint. So, I think it’s good news that the MRI is clean and good news also that the treatment responded right away and he was able to throw today.”