PHILADELPHIA -- Jacob deGrom's balky hamstring forced an untimely exit Wednesday night.
Now, the New York Mets ace hopes it won't mean an early end to his season.
DeGrom left a rare rough outing because of a right hamstring spasm, then watched his teammates erase a four-run deficit in rallying for a 5-4 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Manager Luis Rojas said deGrom played catch without pain on Thursday and had "bounced back after yesterday's scary moment.''
"Apparently we caught it early,'' Rojas said.
The 32-year-old deGrom said he first had issues with his hamstring in his previous start and it went away, so he didn't tell the team. He couldn't shake the feeling early against the Phillies and this time didn't take any chances.
"I think it's just day by day," he said. "What's weird is running around, playing catch, it seems fine. Then once I get to full intensity in a game is when I feel it. Hopefully it's something we can treat and get back out there as quick as possible.''
DeGrom had a surprisingly difficult two innings that pointed toward an apparent injury and could derail his bid for a third consecutive National League Cy Young Award. He allowed three earned runs in a start for the first time this season, pushing his ERA back over 2.00 at 2.09.
The right-hander, who struck out 12 Phillies on Sept. 6, was pulled after only 40 pitches and one strikeout. He appeared to spike a water bottle in frustration in the dugout after a brief chat with pitching coach Jeremy Hefner and trainer Brian Chicklo.
Hefner visited deGrom on the mound in the second inning when he allowed all his runs, but there was no immediate indication he was hurt. Michael Wacha replaced deGrom in the third with New York trailing 3-0.
"They said, 'Hey, there's no reason to try and push through this and hurt something,''' deGrom said.