The newly inked Met spent 2024 in Milwaukee.
Per a report by Mike Puma of the New York Post, Frankie Montas has not been throwing and will ‘remain shut down for a significant stretch.’
While there are photos of Montas working out at Mets’ spring training in Port St. Lucie circulating online (like the one used on this article, courtesy of Sam Navarro/USA Today), Puma’s report seems to suggest that Montas has not been throwing thus far at camp, or at least was shut down from throwing at some point in the last week or so when pitchers and catchers reported.
If Montas is going to miss significant time this spring/early season, the Mets have a fair amount of depth on the 40-Man Roster. Paul Blackburn, José Buttó, Griffin Canning, Max Kranck, and Tylor Megill are all potential short-term starters on the depth chart, though Buttó seems likely bullpen bound as he is without minor league options remaining.
However, the Mets were reported to be interested in trading for starting pitching, being most recently linked to Dylan Cease of the San Diego Padres. Whether this injury is severe enough to warrant a trade remains to be seen.
Montas signed a two-year, $34 million deal with the Mets this offseason (with an opt-out after the 2025 season), coming off stints with the Brewers, Reds, Yankees, and Athletics. As our Lukas Vlahos discussed in his piece grading the Montas signing, there were some adjustments made after his trade to the Brewers that may indicate a return to more effectiveness, or could just be statistical noise.
UPDATE: Per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com, Montas has a high-grade lat strain and will be shut down for 6-8 weeks. With spring training just beginning and Montas shut down for at least six weeks, expecting Montas on a major league mound before late May at the very earliest seems unlikely.