Dillon Gee is far too familiar with the disabled list.
In 2009, a torn labrum in his right shoulder ended his year. In 2012, he underwent season-ending surgery to repair a blood clot in an artery in his right shoulder. The only upside in each instance was Gee had no reason to rush back from injury.
This May, Gee was back on the disabled list, with a strained right lat, but he felt entirely unfamiliar with the road to recovery.
“This was the first time I’ve been on the DL with a chance to come back in the same season, and so for me that was a new learning experience of trying to prepare again for the season,” said Gee, who will be making his first start for the Mets since May 10 on Wednesday. “It was literally like spring training all over again. Before when I got hurt, it was season-ending and it was just, ‘Rest up and you’re good.’ I was kind of in uncharted territory with trying to rest and trying to recover and trying to get back into the season.”
Only two weeks after being placed on the disabled list, Gee felt renewed discomfort.
Wanting to get back so quickly, Gee — arguably in the midst of his best season — only delayed his return.
“That’s what happened the first time, trying to rush it and get back too quick,” Gee said. “Being up here when I was first hurt, I was up here for like a week, that’s why I kind of rushed it. Being around the team, being here watching games made me want to rush, so it was actually kind of nice to get away to Florida for a little bit and just really focus on my recovery.
“I think a lot of getting hurt and coming back is mental. Even if you might be good physically, you can be a little hesitant mentally because you’re a little scared that you might aggravate it and re-injure it and that takes a little bit to get over.
“That’s why the two innings in the [Gulf Coast League] was good because I let it go and I responded well the next day. It seemed like after that outing, I stopped worrying about how I was going to feel and got more into the aggressive mind-set of, ‘Let’s get some pitches going and get back up here.’ ”
Following an outing with the GCL Mets and two appearances with the
Brooklyn Cyclones, Gee is ready to return, filling in for recently-injured Jon Niese.
Terry Collins plans on letting Gee throw to 90 to 95 pitches on Wednesday, with the 28-year-old having thrown 75 pitches in his last outing with Brooklyn, but the Mets manager is confident Gee will not be limited in any other way.
The right-hander is 3-1 with a 2.73 ERA over eight starts this season.
“From what we heard the other night from the game in Brooklyn, it sounds like he’s pretty close to being himself,” Collins said. “His big pitch is his changeup, which was working very effectively for him. Now, to get him deep in the game, that might take a couple starts … but I don’t think, knowing Dillon and knowing how he got ready to do his rehab starts, I’m sure of two things — the command and his changeup. If they’re working, I think he’ll be himself.”
Gee said he’s already there.
“I have no hesitations at all anymore,” he said. “I feel like I’ve been throwing the ball well the past couple games. I just have to build the pitches up, but I feel like I’m ready to help the team out.”