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MIAMI, March 30 (UPI) -- New York Mets pitcher Justin Verlander hurt his right arm and will start the 2023 season on the injured list, the team announced Thursday. The Mets said the three-time Cy Young Award winner sustained a "low-grade teres major strain" and will undergo an additional examination in a week. The teres major is a muscle situated inside the armpit.
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"This is not the way I wanted my Mets tenure to start, that's for sure," Verlander told reporters as the Mets prepared to face the Miami Marlins at loanDepot park in Miami.
"I put in a ton of work to not have things like this happen. We are athletes. Unfortunately, when you are working at a high level of intensity, stuff like this does come along. I'm just very thankful that it's as minor as it is."
Verlander, 40, signed a two-year, $86.7 million deal with the Mets in December as a free agent. The nine-time All-Star went 18-4 with a league-best 1.75 ERA in 28 starts last season for the Houston Astros, en route to his second World Series title.
He missed the 2021 season and most of 2020 with an elbow injury.
Verlander said he told Mets about the injury Wednesday night. He underwent an MRI scan Thursday.
"I think the fact that I'm going to be able to continue to throw is showing how minor of an injury it is," Verlander said. "But still, there is something there. At a different point in the season, particularly late in the year, I think pitching [would] definitely on the table.
"If it was the playoffs, I'm definitely pitching. But it being the beginning of the season, coming off of spring training, it just makes too much sense to not push it right now."
The Marlins are hosting the Mets at 4:10 p.m. EDT Thursday in Miami. Max Scherzer will start for the Mets. Reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara will start for the Marlins.
Verlander was scheduled to start Saturday against the Marlins. Fellow right-handed pitcher Tylor Megill is expected to fill his spot in the rotation.
