New York Mets starting pitcher Jose Quintana is scheduled to make his season debut against the Chicago White Sox on Thursday.
The 34-year-old left-hander has yet to appear for the Mets season, having undergone rib surgery in March. New York signed Quintana to a two-year, $26 million contract in December.
Quintana spent most of June in the minors as part of his rehab assignment. Across five games and 15.2 innings in Low-A, High-A and Triple-A, Quintana posted a 4.60 ERA with 16 strikeouts and eight walks.
The Mets activated Quintana from the 60-day injured list on July 14.
In his major league career, Quintana is 89-87 with a 3.75 ERA and 1.278 WHIP.
Quintana made his MLB debut with the White Sox back in 2012. The Columbian-born southpaw went five consecutive seasons with an ERA under 3.80, culminating in an All-Star appearance and AL Cy Young votes in 2016.
Midway through his sixth season with the White Sox, Quintana was traded across town to the Chicago Cubs. Quintana pitched three-and-a-half seasons with the Cubs, keeping him in Chicago through his age 31 season.
Quintana started 2021 with the Los Angeles Angels, but was waived and ended the year with the San Francisco Giants. After signing with the Pittsburgh Pirates in the offseason, Quintana was dealt to the St. Louis Cardinals at the 2022 trade deadline.
Dating back to 2013, Quintana had made 32-plus appearances in eight of the last nine full seasons.
The Mets finally got a hold of Quintana just before he was hit by his most severe injury yet, holding him out of the rotation for nearly four months. Without him, New York has started the 2023 season 45-50, despite boasting one of the most expensive rosters in baseball history.
Between Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Carlos Carrasco, Quintana and Kodai Senga – who are 40, 38, 36, 34 and 30 years old, respectively – the Mets are shelling out $128.7 million to starting pitchers this season.
First pitch between the Mets and White Sox is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. ET at Citi Field. Quintana will be facing off with Michael Kopech, who is scheduled to start for Chicago.
More must-reads: