New York Mets starter Taijuan Walker recently returned from an injury, right shoulder bursitis, that had everyone doubting his ability to succeed in 2022.
But he left no place for doubts on Thursday afternoon with his performance against the Washington Nationals.
“Taijuan Walker threw seven shutout innings across just 85 pitches against Washington today. Terrific bounce back outing, and he lowered his ERA from 4.91 to 3.00,” New York Daily News’ reporter Deesha Thosar tweeted today.
Taijuan Walker threw seven shutout innings across just 85 pitches against Washington today. Terrific bounce back outing, and he lowered his ERA from 4.91 to 3.00.
— Deesha (@DeeshaThosar) May 12, 2022
It was, indeed, a very solid outing for the oft-injured right-hander.
The Mets Have A Mission: Getting Back Vintage Walker
If he can recapture his form and stay healthy, it would be a huge win for the Mets.
Fortunately for them, other pieces of the rotation have answered the call and pitched well in his absence.
Max Scherzer, Chris Bassitt, Tylor Megill, Carlos Carrasco, and David Peterson have been good to elite so far.
Adding Walker to that mix would be a positive development for a Mets team that is also waiting for ace Jacob deGrom, currently on his way back from a stress reaction in his right scapula.
Granted, the Nationals are perhaps not the greatest offensive team out there to really declare Walker back, but it’s good to see him dominating.
Ideally, the Mets would like to see some more strikeouts from Walker, too: in 18 frames so far, he has fanned just eight hitters.
But they will have to exercise patience with him, as he is just coming back from an injury.
Additionally, shoulder injuries are always delicate.
In any case, if there is a team in Major League Baseball able to exercise patience with their players, it’s the NL East-leading Mets.
