Jacob deGrom Exits vs. Braves; Elbow Injury Diagnosed as Hyperextension

New York Mets starting pitcher Jacob deGrom left Wednesday's start against the Atlanta Braves after four innings with an elbow injury.

Per The Athletic's Tim Britton, deGrom was diagnosed with a hyperextended elbow.

There was no apparent indication anything was wrong with deGrom prior to his departure at Citi Field. The All-Star right-hander allowed just two hits with six strikeouts and threw 46 pitches.

DeGrom eclipsed 200 innings for the first time in his career in 2017. He finished the season 15-10 with a 3.53 ERA and 3.50 FIP in 31 starts, per Baseball Reference. He has picked up right where he left off so far in 2018 with a 2.06 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 39.1 innings prior to Wednesday's start.

The 29-year-old right-hander provided consistency to what was an otherwise disappointing Mets starting rotation. Injuries limited both Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz, the former making just seven starts. Matt Harvey also battled injuries and finished with a 6.70 ERA in his 19 appearances.

The Mets' success this season will depend heavily on deGrom and Syndergaard being able to stay healthy and lead the starting rotation.

The Mets will hope deGrom's injury isn't a sign of things to come after getting off to a 17-10 start through their first 27 games.