Justin Verlander 'progressing well,' could return to Mets by end of April

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New York Mets fans may not have to wait too much longer to watch Justin Verlander make his debut for their team.

Speaking to reporters before the Mets' home opener Friday, Verlander said he is "progressing well" in his recovery from an arm injury that caused him to start the season on the injured list. The 40-year-old right-hander suffered a low-grade strain to the teres major muscle in his upper throwing arm near the end of spring training.

"I feel like I really turned a corner a couple days ago," Verlander said. "The general soreness that I was having is really dissipating quickly. … I've been able to keep throwing and also increase my intensity of throwing up to about 75%. Just kind of hovering at that level. I can't give you an exact date but I feel like I'm really close to being able to take the leash off and start getting after it and build up [my arm strength]."

Because Verlander has been able to continue throwing while sidelined, he is optimistic that the build-up process to get his arm ready to pitch in games again would not take long. The three-time Cy Young award winner was seen playing catch at Citi Field before the Mets' game against the Miami Marlins on Friday. 

When asked if the end of April would be a reasonable timetable for his return to the field, Verlander responded that he expects to return even sooner.

"We haven't put a timeframe on it, but that would be a — well, worst-case [scenario] would be being stupid and re-injuring it, but that would be a very slow build from here," Verlander said.

The future Hall of Famer signed a two-year, $86.7 million contract with the Mets last offseason after winning his third Cy Young and second World Series championship with the Houston Astros. Verlander was a key part of the Astros' World Series championship runs in 2017 and 2022 after spending the first decade-plus of his career with the Detroit Tigers, where he served as the team's longtime ace and was named 2011 American League MVP.

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