"Maton's signing is for $2 million, per sources. This represents the first major-league signing of the offseason/spring for St. Louis, the last of 30 teams to do so," Woo tweeted.

Right-hander Phil Maton signed a one-year deal with the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday. Maton, 31, finished last season with the Mets following a deadline deal with the Tampa Bay Rays and did not allow a run in 25 of his 31 appearances with New York.

Second baseman Jeff McNeil has a low-grade oblique strain and will miss the start of the regular season, manager Carlos Mendoza announced Thursday. McNeil will be shut down 7-10 days and the Mets expect him to miss 3-4 weeks overall.

In a vacuum, Jeff McNeil’s injury is “a minor hiccup,” as the second baseman put it -- an unfortunate case of a right oblique strain with two weeks to go until Opening Day. It should not sideline McNeil past mid-April.

The Mets were dealt another injury blow to their position player core as one of their all-star infielders will begin the season on the injured list.