Mets ace Justin Verlander placed on IL on Opening Day

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Opening Day already isn't going quite as planned for the New York Mets.

Justin Verlander has been placed on the 15-day injured list (IL) with a low grade teres major strain, the team announced Thursday, sidelining the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner before his first appearance with the organization.

He will continue throwing at "moderate intensity" and will undergo a rescan of the injury in a week, the Mets said.

Verlander, 40, signed a two-year, $86.6 million deal with the Mets this past offseason, joining 38-year-old starter Max Scherzer atop the team’s pitching rotation. He referred to his shoulder injury as "very minimal."

"I think the fact that I’m still going to be able to throw is showing how minor of an injury it is," Verlander added.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner has pitched well during spring training and is coming off one of the best seasons of his career, helping the Houston Astros win the World Series with an 18-4 record and 1.75 ERA.

Verlander missed nearly all the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to Tommy John surgery.

The Mets are set to open their season against the Miami Marlins on Thursday (1:10 p.m. ET) with Scherzer on the mound.

The organization is already facing a season without closer Edwin Díaz, who tore the patellar tendon in his right knee while celebrating Puerto Rico's World Baseball Classic victory over the Dominican Republic.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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