Mets ace deGrom whiffs 5 of 6 batters in 1st rehab start July 3 sharefacebooktwitterredditlink NEW YORK (AP) Back in a game at last, Jacob deGrom was sharp. The New York Mets ace struck out five of the six batters he faced and threw 18 of 24 pitches for strikes Sunday night in his first minor league rehabilitation start for Cla s A St. Lucie. The only hiccup for deGrom against the Jupiter Hammerheads in Port St. Lucie, Florida, came when he hit a batter with a pitch. It was the first competitive outing since spring training for Asdrubal Cabrera Jersey deGrom, sidelined all season because of a stre s reaction in his right scapula that caused inflammation. The two-time Cy Young Award winner also mi sed the second half of last season with right forearm tightne s and a sprained elbow he hasnt pitched in Steven Matz Jersey the majors since July 7, 2021. As he builds up arm strength and stamina, the 34-year-old right-hander will need several minor league rehab outings before hes ready to rejoin New Yorks rotation. General manager Billy Eppler likened the proce s to a typical spring training progre sion, and manager Buck Showalter said deGrom wont return until hes stretched out enough that he could pitch five innings or more. So the likelihood is deGrom wont be back in the big leagues until at least late July, after the All-Star break.Fellow ace Max Scherzer (5-1, 2.54 ERA) is scheduled to return from a strained left oblique muscle and start for the Mets on Tuesday night at Cincinnati Adrian Gonzalez Jersey . Scherzer, a three-time Cy Young Award winner, got hurt May 18 against St. Louis and recently made two rehab starts for Double-A Binghamton.New York leads the NL East by 3 1/2 games over defending World Series champion Atlanta.___More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports in this topic National League Major League Baseball New York Mets Max Scherzer share World Cup fans find booze at hotels, Qatar's 1 liquor store Qatar's strict rules regarding alcohol have drawn attention as it hosts the World Cup 1 HOUR AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Sterling leaves England World Cup camp after home break-in England forward Raheem Sterling has left his teams World Cup camp in Qatar and returned to the U.K. after a break-in at his home 1 HOUR AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Ronaldo looks Lenny Dykstra Jersey to shine like Mbapp and Me si at World Cup Cristiano Ronaldo has been overshadowed by the brilliance of Lionel Me si and Kylian Mbapp so far at the World Cup 1 HOUR AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Ottawa hosts Los Angeles after Giroux's 2-goal game The Ottawa Senators host the Los Angeles Kings after Claude Giroux's two-goal game against the San Jose Sharks in the Senators' 5-2 win Gary Carter Jersey 2 HOURS AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS Penguins host the Blue Jackets following Kapanen's hat trick The Pittsburgh Penguins host the Columbus Blue Jackets after Kasperi Kapanen's hat trick against the St. Louis Blues in the Penguins' 6-2 win 2 HOURS AGO ASSOCIATED PRESS