PHILADELPHIA — Jake Arrieta promised he’d be ready for the postseason, or sooner. Now the Philadelphia Phillies have to get there.
Arrieta pitched effectively into the sixth inning before leaving with a hamstring injury, Didi Gregorius hit a two-run homer and the Phillies beat the New York Mets 4-1 Tuesday night.
Arrieta (4-4) allowed one run on Brandon Nimmo‘s homer and eight hits in 5 1/3 innings. But he walked off the mound, grabbing the back of his right leg, after hitting Andres Gimenez with a pitch to load the bases.
“I’ll be back for the playoffs, there’s no question in my mind about that. I think I can be back sooner than that,” Arrieta said.
The 2015 NL Cy Young Award winner said he sustained a similar injury in 2017 with the Chicago Cubs.
“In 2017, I had to miss two starts but that’s because I tried to come back prematurely,” he said. “There’s no need to rush this, but I’m going to do everything in my power with treatment with soft tissue work, making sure my tissue is hydrated and everything’s ready to go. If I continue to do that and take care of myself, I don’t intend to miss too much time.”
JoJo Romero entered after Arrieta departed and retired Wilson Ramos on a double-play grounder, with first baseman Alec Bohm making an excellent, backhanded pick.
Romero tossed two innings, Tommy Hunter got two outs and Hector Neris finished for his fourth save in seven chances.
“Our bullpen did an outstanding job today,” Phillies manager Joe Girardi said.