Mets: Quintana will miss half of the season due to surgery

Southpaw Jose Quintana will miss at least the first half of the season with the New York Mets with a stress fracture in his ribs.

The Mets are relieved the Colombian starter didn’t have a worse diagnosis.

Team general manager Billy Eppler said on Tuesday the MRI revealed a rib injury. Quintana was seen by an orthopedic tumor specialist for a biopsy and other MRI scans which ruled out cancer.

“It goes beyond baseball,” Eppler said. “José has our support and everything he needs. I am grateful that we are here and not with another of the possible results”.

Eppler added that Quintana will undergo bone graft surgery on Friday in New York. He said recovering from surgery will keep Quintana out until at least early July, but didn’t provide further details.

“A lot will depend on José, how quickly he can perform physical activities, how much rest time he needs after the operation,” the general manager clarified. “Will he need to take a week or 10 days or two weeks before he can run? It is an invasive operation. Every time you do a bone graft, it’s going to hurt. That’s why it’s hard to give a timeline.”

The 34-year-old Colombian signed a two-year, $26 million deal with the Mets in December after going 6-7 with a 2.93 ERA in 32 starts with Pittsburgh and St. Louis last season . His career mark is 89-87 with a 3.75 ERA.

Candidates to replace Quintana in the rotation are left-hander David Peterson and right-hander Tylor Megill. Peterson, 27, finished 7-5 with a 3.83 ERA in 28 appearances last season, including 19 starts. Megill, also 27, was 4-2 with a 5.13 ERA in 15 games, including nine starts.

“Obviously you don’t like to see one of our teammates go out like this and I hope he recovers as quickly as possible and stays healthy,” Peterson said after pitching four innings. without a hit on Tuesday. “But I think that’s how it’s always been. It’s times like these when it helps to have people to choose from.”