#Jacob deGrom seems ready for Mets Opening Day

Jacob deGrom appears ready for Opening Day.

The right-hander had a successful return to the mound in a simulated game at Citi Field on Sunday after leaving his previous outing in an intrasquad game with back discomfort.

The ace threw 60 pitches Sunday, struck out nine of the 14 batters he faced and didn’t allow a hit.

DeGrom had been slated to start the Mets’ second exhibition game of spring training 2.0 against the Yankees in The Bronx before experiencing back tightness in the intrasquad game on Tuesday, which forced him out after just one inning.

So, instead he thew a simulated game. And it was a positive sign for the Mets, who now figure to have their ace on the mound against the Braves on Friday in Queens. Manager Luis Rojas has said he’d like to have deGrom in position to throw 85 pitches in the season opener.

General manager Brodie Van Wagenen, assistant GM Allard Baird and assistant pitching coach Jeremy Accardo were on hand for deGrom’s outing, with Tomas Nido behind the plate.

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Robert Gsellman has been limited to playing catch after battling triceps tightness, according to Rojas, and his status for Opening Day is undetermined.

“We’ll reassess day-to-day,’’ Rojas said. “He’s progressing. … We still don’t know [if he’ll be ready] for Friday.”

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Wilson Ramos was expected to start for the Mets in their exhibition game against the Yankees on Sunday night, but Rojas said the catcher wasn’t with the team because he was “dealing with a personal matter.”

The Mets also announced the addition of Rene Rivera to their 40-man roster to add to their catching depth, along with Ramos, Nido and Ali Sanchez.

If Ramos isn’t ready for Friday’s season opener against the Braves, Nido figures to get the start.

“We feel confident with where they are right now,’’ Rojas said of the catchers. “Nido worked really hard in the offseason before the first camp on his offense. He’s always been a good defensive catcher. There are some things he needs to tone down and work on to be more consistent [offensively].”

Rojas thought Nido had a good at-bat Saturday when he singled against Zack Britton.

Nido has had success at the plate in the minors, including in 2016 with Class-A St. Lucie, when he hit .320 with Rojas as his manager.

“If he maintains his focus and is able to be consistent at the plate, he can definitely be a good hitter,’’ Rojas said. “It hasn’t translated yet to the big-league level, but he’s put in the work.”

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Brandon Nimmo said playing Saturday’s exhibition game at Citi Field in front of no fans wasn’t that much of an adjustment thanks to his experience in the NL East.

“Honestly, no knock against Miami, but it felt like playing in Miami,” Nimmo said of the Marlins’ inability to draw crowds. “We just didn’t have that many fans in the stadium. We had the cardboard feel. I would say the sound was there. I guess I didn’t realize until this point how much of a difference music and the antics in between pitches makes, because it felt really game-like. I was surprised how much it felt like a game.”

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Rojas said the Mets “took another step” in learning how to deal with playing through a pandemic, practicing social distancing on their way from Citi Field to The Bronx.

“There were 10 of us on each bus,’’ Rojas said. “We were able to maintain distance and went through the screening process to get into the [visiting] clubhouse.”

Nimmo said he had sympathy for Rojas in his first year as a major league manager in having to deal with the coronavirus protocols.

“I feel bad for him having this all in his first big-league managing job,’’ said Nimmo, who played for Rojas at Single-A Savannah. “But he’s handled it great. … He’s an even-keeled guy to be around during this turbulent time. He’s rolled with the punches. He’s definitely a man for the job.”

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Yoenis Cespedes started in left field Sunday after serving as the DH on Saturday at Citi Field. He hadn’t started a game in the outfield in the majors since May 2018.