- Max Scherzer will miss 6 to 8 weeks with a moderate to high-grade oblique strain.
- Scherzer’s Cy Young odds went from +500 to +2500 at PointsBet USA.
- The Mets also saw their NL East odds drop from -200 to -185 after the team revealed Scherzer’s timeline.
The curse on the New York Mets’ pitchers spares nobody. Not even Max Scherzer.
New York signed Scherzer to a three-year deal worth $130 million during the offseason to bolster their pitching rotation. Max was one of the early favorites to win the NL Cy Young with a good start. Then came Wednesday night.
Scherzer took himself out in the sixth inning of his latest start against the St. Louis Cardinals after hurting himself in the middle of an at-bat against Albert Pujols:
Max Scherzer has removed himself from his start due to apparent injury. Could be an absolutely brutal loss for the Mets.
🎥 @SNYtv pic.twitter.com/SJpwRHHDyS
— Stadium (@Stadium) May 19, 2022
The injury was later revealed to be an oblique strain which was described by the team as “moderate to high grade”. Because of that Scherzer is expected to miss significant time, causing a shift in Scherzer’s NL CY Young odds and the Mets’ divisional odds.
Max Scherzer Possibly out for 2 Months
BREAKING: Max Scherzer possiblly out for 2 MONTHS 😬 pic.twitter.com/Tl2gFC2jGG
— MyBookie – Bet With The Best (@MyBookie) May 19, 2022
Scherzer is expected to miss six to eight weeks due to the injury, according to a team statement. With the Mets winning 11-4 on Wednesday, Scherzer was credited with the win to improve to 5-1 on the season with an ERA of 2.54. The three-time Cy Young winner threw 87 pitches including 67 strikes on Wednesday and had his team up 6-2 when he left the game.
Max Max is the latest Mets pitcher to hit the injured list. Former Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom has yet to see action this season after suffering a shoulder injury during training camp. On the other hand, Tylor Megill was placed on the injured list with biceps tendinitis after only six starts with an ERA of 2.43. With Scherzer out, the Mets will probably promote David Peterson from Triple-A Syracuse to join Chris Bassitt, Carlos Carrasco, and Taijuan Walker in the rotation.
Immediately after the injury, Scherzer’s NL Cy Young odds went from +500 to +2500 while Corbin Burnes moved from +500 to +350 at PointsBet USA which was the first of the top MLB sportsbooks to update their odds. The others have yet to put back their NL Cy Young betting boards but a major shake-up is expected everywhere given the significance of Scherzer’s possible absence.
Mets Odds to Win NL East Drop
Mets odds movement to win the NL East:
-200 ➡️ -185
— BetMGM 🦁 (@BetMGM) May 19, 2022
Aside from the effect in Scherzer’s Cy Young odds, the Mets’ odds to win the NL East also dropped, but not that much. At BetMGM, the Mets went from -200 to -185 while the Braves improved from +300 to +280 and the Phillies moved up from +650 to +600. The same movement can be seen at the other top MLB betting sites.
Caesars Sportsbook has also faded them to -190. PointsBet USA currently has the longest odds for the Mets at -180. But not all of the top MLB betting sites have cut the Mets’ odds with Unibet and Borgata online still having them at -200. The Mets are even at a shorter -250 price at the BetOnline App and are at their shortest odds at -260 via Bet365 USA.
The Mets are currently seven games ahead of the Phillies in the NL East standings before Thursday’s games at 26-14 against 18-20 New York is also a comfortable 8 games up on the defending World Series champions Atlanta Braves who are at 17-21. In the bigger picture, the Mets still have the second-best odds to win the NL (+400) behind the Dodgers and are third (+750) behind the Dodgers, and their cross-town rivals Yankees in the latest World Series betting boards.
