Shawn Marcum was going to be a stealth signing for the Mets. He was going to come in and be the veteran right hander that Chris Young had been for this franchise but maybe even a whole lot more.
A career marked by fits and starts in both Toronto and Milwaukee, he was ready to take his one year deal and help the Mets pitching staff be a strong one.
After what we have seen from Jon Niese and Matt Harvey the first two starts and the potential we have seen from Dillon Gee in the past, Marcum should have been able to fit right in and add another talented arm to the rotation.
Unfortunately the thing that has caused those fits he had in Toronto and Milwaukee which kept him from making more of those starts came rearing it’s ugly head again.
An injury.
One day after having a simulated game appearance be canceled because of continued discomfort in his neck, he was sent back to New York for further tests. When you hear that, I’m sure you felt a chill in your bones.
Marcum was put on the 15-day disabled list with biceps tendinitis, retroactive to March 22, on Monday and was scheduled to pitch on Sunday against the Marlins.
Obviously, those plans are out the window and, I don’t know what the training staff, the same guys booed on opening day, will do.
Perhaps they can use this to help Marcum feel better and get him back on track. My point is that the faster they can help him get back on the field, the better.
The fact is that Marcum when healthy is one of the more underrated right handed pitchers in the game and would be a nice veteran presence for a staff that without Johan Santana doesn’t really have one.
The team knew that signing him to a deal came with risks and that is why a guy of his caliber came so cheap this year. I had a feeling that this signing could have been one of the best the team has had since it got R.A. Dickey on a minor league deal.
But, the injuries have come back to haunt Marcum once again and have delayed his first game as a New York Met for who knows how long.
