The New York Mets have been dealt a huge blow following the news that closer Bobby Parnell will miss the remainder of the 2014 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery – giving Betfair fans something to think about at this early stage of the MLB campaign.
Just a day after his blown save in the Mets season opener against Washington, the 29-year old had been diagnosed with a partial tear of the medial collateral ligament in his right elbow.
While the loss of Parnell hasn’t come as a huge surprise to the Mets, it’s still a huge blow to the franchise’s hopes this season, and has certainly had an impact on the Betfair odds.
Parnell was forced to watch the final two months of last season from the sidelines due to a herniated disk in his neck, and this fresh injury will be a bitter pill for the seven-season veteran to swallow.
Jose Valverde has been promoted to the closer role, but it remains to be seen whether he can bring the same level of consistency Parnell produced last season.
Think about that for a second.. the Mets are RELYING on Jose Valverde. The same Valverde that was cut by Detroit in the middle of last season, to be the man this year in the ninth inning.
So far it has worked out well, Valverde has not blown any of his two save opportunities and has been throwing hard in the process.
Of course it hasn’t all been easy for Papa Grande. He had to get Joey Votto and Jay Bruce out with two runners on in a one run game for his first save and loaded the bases in a 4-0 game against Atlanta on Monday before getting Jason Heyward to fly out to the warning track.
Last season Parnell had converted 22 of 26 saves for the Mets before suffering his neck injury, finishing the season with an ERA of 2.16 and 44 strike-outs in 49 appearances.He had looked like he was on his way to being one of the best closers in the National League but sadly that has been put on hold for the moment.
With a recovery time of around 10-14 months following Tommy John surgery, Parnell admitted his decision to undergo the surgery had been made in order to ensure he is fully fit and ready for the 2015 season.
“I want to make sure if I do have surgery I give myself the best bet to get back for next year and have the recovery time,” said the closer.
The right hander is one of three Mets pitchers now set to miss all or the majority of this season after undergoing Tommy John surgery, an injury that has become a bit of an epidemic this season. Parnell joins Matt Harvey and Jeremy Hefner in the recovery room and convincing many Betfair fans that New York will struggle to reach the playoffs this season.
The fact is that the loss of Bobby Parnell to surgery is a big blow to the Mets, make no mistake about that.
Thankfully we have Jose Valverde, an experienced closer to back him up this year.
Yes I seriously wrote that and I hope that more often than not this summer, I don’t regret it.
