The New York Mets called up top pitching prospect Steven Matz in late June, but after two MLB starts the left-hander was placed on the disabled list with a partial lat tear. He's set to return this week and it's possible the Mets have a clear plan for him.
New York has been subject to many rumors regarding their pitching staff. Matt Harvey and Noah Syndergaard are rapidly approaching their 2015 innings limits and Jacob deGrom has also already eclipsed his career total for innings pitched at the MLB level (163).
Matz is now the latest subject of these rumors, particularly regarding how he'll be used if the Mets reach the postseason. The left-hander should return on Sept. 1 and New York is seemingly preparing for his potential role in the postseason after using Bartolo Colon out of the bullpen on Saturday night against the Boston Red Sox.
Manager Terry Collins weighed in on the possibility of using Matz and fellow rookie Noah Syndergaard out of the bullpen in late September and/or in the postseason.
"You're talking about a guy who's had injury issues, Collins said of Matz, via Mike Vorkunov of NJ.com. "To ask him to do something he hasn't done before. To try to go warm up fast and get ready in a hurry - I'm not sure it's fair to him."
"His stuff profiles because he's got a power arm and he throws strikes," Collins said of Syndergaard, via Vorkunov. "When we get close to the end of September, we will analyze where we stand and what our pitching looks like. But right now I have absolutely no plans on putting Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz into the bullpen. They've never done it."
Does this mean Matz will be used in the postseason starting rotation if the Mets make it?
New York will likely move back to a six-man rotation once Matz returns, which will decrease the workloads of deGrom, Harvey and Syndergaard and help preserve them for October baseball. At this point it's assumed those three will constitute the team's rotation for a five-game series, and with the recent struggles of Colon and Jon Niese, it's possible Matz will be the fourth starter in a seven-game series.
This is obviously dependent on how he performs throughout September.
It's hard to believe Matz wouldn't be a top candidate for Collins. The 24-year-old took the MLB by storm in his first two career starts (2-0, 1.32 ERA) and has only pitched 110 total innings this season between the big leagues and minors. Additionally, aside from Niese, Matz is the only left-handed starter the Mets have.
If Matz picks up right where he left off in early July, there's no doubt he'll be in the postseason rotation if the Mets make it there.
"If we are fortunate to get into further play in October I think you've got to go with your best pitchers in the spots that they're best at," Collins added.
