Dave Williams was supposed to be part of the Mets' pitching plans, with a decent shot at making the Opening Day roster. GM Omar Minaya even mentioned him as the potential breakout star of camp -- at least until he needed surgery to repair a ruptured disc in his upper back two weeks ago. Instead, Williams was sitting on his stool yesterday morning, his neck and head uncomfortably wedged in a brace, as the rest of the pitchers went about their business.
"I can deal with the pain," Williams said. "It’s just the frustration of being here in camp and seeing everybody healthy and I'm sitting over here jacked up.The guys know I can pitch when I’m healthy. I’m just sick of being injured."
Williams said he had bone marrow removed from his hip in order to help fuse his spine where the disc was removed. He plans to have the brace removed in another month, and then hopes to be throwing in May.
"Right now, I’m just resting," Williams said. "There’s no real rehab for it. Just rest and let the fuse set into my body. Omar called me when all this was going on and told me that I’d be one of his guys when I was healthy so I’ll kind of go from there."