MLB Weekly Digest March 20th Edition: Mets Diaz Hurt at WBC

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The prior week in MLB was about a reliever who suffered an injury at the World Baseball Classic, a young pitcher for a team in the National League who will undergo season-ending surgery, and a starting pitcher who will be sidelined for several months.

New York Mets Reliever Edwin Diaz Out for Season After Tearing Patella Tendon at WBC

The New York Mets were dealt a catastrophic blow to their bullpen last week, as reliever Edwin Diaz underwent surgery for a torn patellar tendon, per a team announcement.

Edwin Díaz underwent successful repair of the patellar tendon in his right knee today. He is expected to begin a formal rehab program in about a week. Additional updates will be provided as appropriate.

— New York Mets (@Mets) March 17, 2023

Diaz suffered the injury during a celebration at the World Baseball Classic.

The recovery period for a player having this injury is eight months, which would force Diaz to miss the entire MLB season.

Diaz is the anchor of the Mets’ bullpen, and the team signed him to a multi-year contract in November.

He is also coming off a superb 2022 campaign with the team.

The reliever posted a 1.31 ERA in 62 innings pitched (61 games) with 118 strikeouts, 18 walks issued, three home runs yielded, a 297 ERA+, 0.90 FIP, 0.83 WHIP, and 32 saves.

The loss of Diaz to a freak injury is a devastating blow to the team.

The Mets could use David Robertson as their closer with Diaz being injured.

Robertson has 157 saves in his career and picked up 20 saves last season with the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies.

The injury to Diaz is monumental, and hopefully, it does not prevent the team from having a successful season.

Washington Nationals Pitcher Cade Cavalli to Undergo Tommy John Surgery

Washington Nationals right-handed pitcher Cade Cavalli has a grade three sprain of his ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) and will need Tommy John surgery, per a team announcement.

By the way, a Grade 3 sprain is a complete tear of the UCL. So it's not like there was much reason for the Nationals and Cavalli to seek out multiple opinions and see if something other than surgery was possible.

— Mark Zuckerman (@MarkZuckerman) March 16, 2023

Cavalli, the Nationals top pitching prospect, was forced to exit a spring training game last week after manager Dave Martinez said the pitcher “felt something behind his throwing elbow,” per Andrew Golden of The Washington Post.

Cavalli was expected to have a chance of being in the starting rotation for the Nationals this upcoming season.

He made his MLB debut last year after posting good numbers at Triple-A with a 3.71 ERA and 9.6 K/9 in 20 starts.

The Nationals selected Cavalli with the 22^nd pick during the 2020 draft.

Cavalli will now have to go through a lengthy rehab process, and if there are no setbacks, he will be pitching at some point next year for the Nationals.

New York Mets Starting Pitcher Jose Quintana Will Undergo Bone-Graft Surgery on Rib

New York Mets starting pitcher Jose Quintana will require bone-graft surgery on his rib and is expected to be sidelined until at least July, according to general manager Billy Eppler, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

Update: José Quintana has a lesion on his rib, according to Mets GM Billy Eppler. He was seen by a tumor specialist, and the results of a biopsy came back benign.

However, Quintana is going to undergo bone graft surgery. The Mets aren't expecting him back until at least July.

— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) March 14, 2023

Eppler also mentioned a lesion was found on Quintana’s rib, but a biopsy revealed it was benign.

During the offseason, the Mets signed Quintana to a two-year, $26-million contract, and he was diagnosed with a stress fracture in one of his left ribs in early March.

Quintana is coming off a strong 2022 season as he split time between the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals.

He posted a 2.93 ERA in 165 2/3 innings pitched (32 starts) with 137 strikeouts, 47 walks issued, eight home runs allowed, a 137 ERA+, 2.99 FIP, and a 1.21 WHIP.

The loss of Quintana is a blow to the starting rotation depth for the Mets, but hopefully, he can return in July.

About Post Author

Chris Lacey

Chris is a New Jersey native whose favorite sports team is the Arizona Diamondbacks. He previously attended Western New England College to study Sports Management. Chris has been following the Diamondbacks since he was 12. You can find him on Twitter at @aecanada12.

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