Right-hander Dedniel Nunez will undergo Tommy John surgery, according to multiple Mets beat writers. Nunez was placed on the 15-day IL on July 3 with a right elbow sprain, and said at the time that surgery was a possibility. Subsequent tests confirmed that Nunez will have to go under the knife, and he’ll now miss the rest of the 2025 season and possibly the entire 2026 campaign.
This will be the second Tommy John procedure of Nunez’s career, which cost Nunez the entire 2021 season and (in combination with the canceled 2020 minor league season) resulted in almost a three-year absence from game action for the right-hander. That surgery took place during Nunez’s brief time in the Giants organization, as San Francisco selected Nunez away from the Mets in the 2020 Rule 5 Draft, but he was returned to New York following the 2021 campaign when Nunez was still in the midst of his rehab work.
Upon finally getting back on the mound in 2022, Nunez’s high strikeout totals drew some attention, and he got his first MLB look in 2024 when he posted a 2.31 ERA over his first 35 big league innings. Combined with a 35.5% strikeout rate and 5.9% walk rate, Nunez turned plenty of heads in his rookie year, and his sudden emergence in New York’s bullpen was one of the many factors that led to the Mets’ big surge to the playoffs over the final four months of the season. Unfortunately for Nunez, forearm problems cut short his participation in the playoff race, as he pitched only once after July 23.
Nunez wasn’t as effective this season, as he posted a 4.66 ERA and a 14.6% walk rate over 9 2/3 innings, and his strikeout rate dropped to (a still solid) 26.8%. Though opposing batters have only a .217 BABIP against Nunez, he has been allowing a ton of hard contact, so even those relatively few balls that are landing for hits are causing significant damage in his small sample size of playing time. His Triple-A numbers were also shaky, and it is fair to wonder if the arm troubles Nunez faced last year and his current elbow issues contributed to the lack of production.
The usual 13-15 month period for Tommy John rehab means that Nunez might be sidelined until Opening Day 2027 if he runs into any setbacks in his recovery process. Given that this is his second TJ surgery, it is perhaps more likely anyway that Nunez’s rehab will be on the longer end of a timeframe. Nunez will continue to collect MLB service time while on the Mets’ injured list, though that is small consolation as the 29-year-old is facing yet another extended career hiatus.
The Mets weren’t necessarily counting on Nunez as a high-leverage arm, but his absence removes another arm from an injury-ravaged pitching staff. New York is already expected to heavily target rotation and bullpen help in advance of the trade deadline, and multiple new hurlers may be required to help the Mets reverse their slide over the last month of play.
Not only does he have a Dedniel but he’s got a Dedelbow to match. Heal up!
An elbow is an elbow, but what’s a niel?
Ask a knight who goes “knee”.
NI!
Maybe he needs a… SHRUBBERY!
One that’s nice. And not too expensive!
They are the keepers of the sacred words: Ni, Peng, and Nuwom!
Very tough for young Mr. Nunez. NYM exceptional pitching coach Jeremy Hefner was also a 2x TJ and it effectively ended his pro career
Times have changed. Getting a second TJ is more common than it was 12 years ago, and outcomes are much better now. .
Hefner is awful, the whole staff, especially the bullpen can’t throw a strike, walk way too many guys, always behind every count. Hefner needs to go.
Once again, Mr. Thomas Jonathan rolls in like an unwanted party guest.
Canuckleball: Tommy’s surname actually is John, not Jonathan.
I was well aware.
Canuckleball: Lame attempt at a joke.
Blue Baron, you ruined the joke. No need to be a wet blanket.
Thomas Edward John, Jr. has over seventy more wins than either Scherzer or Kershaw. Now that’s using the John a lot!
He also pitched every 4th day and hung around for 26 years, giving him 238 to 318 more starts, plus a lot more relief appearances than either of them. . Now look at winning percentages: Kershaw .695, Scherzer .660, John .555
Tommy John not only has the 27th most wins of all time, he also has a better winning percentage than the Ryan Express
Ded in the water.
I think the longevity is the point. Which current pitcher is going to repeat TJ’s durability?
It’s a shame… Nunez had quite a run last year where he looked dominant. Injuries are always the great equalizer for these guys. Hopefully he has a good recovery and can get back to action in 2027.
He was very inconsistent for a couple of years after his first TJ. Hope he gets back faster this time. To be fair, the Mets pitching lab was brand new and (according to Justin Verlander) “primitive’; and the surgery was done, and rehab begun in a different organization.
Is the surgery useless at this point? Guys just get it over and over.
Not useless at all. Guys do come back from it and pitch well. Without it, they would not be able to pitch at all. On the contrary, its gotten better. Ten to twelve years ago, getting a second one was pretty much the end of the career. Those who did come back from it, came back briefly and in a much reduced capacity. So a lot of pitchers elected not to bother with a second. Today, second TJs are producing good outcomes, and third ones are even working for some.
As for “over and over”, there’s a reason for that: pitchers are throwing much harder and with much more torque much more frequently. They’re also doing it at younger ages. Lots of pitchers are having their first one in early college, or even high school, something that was almost never done 15 years ago.
Dr. Frank Job, who pioneered the surgery said on a podcast that the UCL does not reach its full thickness and durability until around the age of 19. Before that, it is much more easily injured if players throw too hard, but thats what players are doing at young ages. Plus, they’re pitching all year round and not taking breaks that might let the ligament recover from the strain that builds up.
Wow. TJS has taken another victim. Prayers for his swift recovery.
He was no factor this season anyway.
I will complain one more time regarding all star selections:
2025 WAR
Ranger Suarez 3.4
Kodai Senga 3.1
Jacob Misiorowski 0.7
The top two pitchers have a better ERA, more wins, more innings, a better WAR, a better FIP, a better ERA+. And the Brewers already had other players rightfully selected.
Misiorowski had an amazing five inning start against the Dodgers, but Ranger and Kodai deserve to make this year’s all star game and Jacob does not.
From what i read Suarez declined to participate preferring to rest and considering Senga was just in his 2nd game back from injury (1 minor and 1 major) i would assume he would have said the same.
The kid i agree needs more but its the players and coaches that chose him. So no one to blame but the players and coaches.
David Stearns strikes again, before trade deadline grade: D-
Amen brother. Both Jamie Moyer and Nolan Ryan attributed their long careers to running their asses off on a regular basis. Moyer would run before starts and after starts; a running machine. I know Max Scherzer is a proponent of running too. It really needs to be more emphasized!!!!!!
You can say that again!
Remember “back in the day” when pitchers were routinely used as pinch-runners?
Mantle, upper case called. It wants its screaming back.
On a different Mets note, has anyone looked in detail about the Mets acquiring Alex Call from the Nats? He has pretty good batting numbers the last 2 years and good fielding numbers in CF. They don’t seem to think he’s a regular, but he would be on the Mets. I don’t know what the Nats would want for him.
Mets appear to have 3 3B, one of whom has trouble getting the ball to Alonso without putting his life in danger. I kind of pray every time Pete gets pulled of the bag for a throw, that he doesn’t collide with the baserunner.