The New York Mets have lost another member of their rotation. Left-hander Joey Lucchesi has a torn ulnar collateral ligament and will have Tommy John surgery, according to Tim Britton of The Athletic. Lucchesi, 28, will have surgery on Thursday, Britton adds. Tommy John surgery means that Lucchesi will be sidelined for the rest of the 2021 season as well as the majority of 2022.
The Mets acquired Lucchesi from the Padres last offseason in the three-team trade that sent Joe Musgrove to San Diego. In 2021, he recorded a 4.46 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 11 appearances (38 1/3 IP), including eight starts. Unfortunately for the Mets, Lucchesi was in a great spot before he went down with the UCL tear. In his last five starts, he posted a 1.19 ERA with 24 strikeouts. Lucchesi also boasts a season-best walk rate this year at just seven percent.
Right-hander Jerad Eickhoff will likely be the favorite to take Lucchesi's spot in the rotation. The Mets' top three starting pitchers -- Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman and Taijuan Walker -- have been extremely productive this year. though lefty David Peterson has struggled with consistency on the mound this year.
The club is still without Carlos Carrasco and Noah Syndergaard. Carrasco, 34, came over to New York from Cleveland in the Francisco Lindor trade, but he's been out with a torn right hamstring and had not made his Mets debut yet. Syndergaard is recovering from 2020 Tommy John surgery, but experienced a setback last month that will shut him down from throwing due to right elbow inflammation for six weeks.
In the National League East, the Mets (37-30) sit in first place with a four-game lead over the Phillies.
