No bullpen in baseball has looked worse than the Mets’ over the past month. At least it could soon look different.
Jeurys Familia took the mound Friday night for the first time since being placed on the injured list on June 18 with a Bennett Lesion in his right shoulder, and threw 1 ¹/₃ innings for Single-A Brooklyn, recording two strikeouts without allowing a baserunner.
Familia, who has posted an unsightly 7.81 ERA in the first season of his second stint in Queens, was back at Citi Field on Saturday afternoon, and close to rejoining the Mets’ bullpen, which has posted a 7.98 ERA in June.
“He’s doing great,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “He was very efficient [in Friday’s outing], threw the ball over the plate, came in today feeling really good, so we’re gonna sit down and have a discussion about what’s next for him. … We have a few [options]. The one thing we want to do, and feel him out for, is if he feels like he needs another [rehab appearance], and then we’ll make a decision from there.”
Justin Wilson’s next attempt at a rehab outing might not be far off, either. The southpaw hasn’t pitched since May 6, and was scratched from an outing with Triple-A Syracuse on June 18 with tightness in his elbow, but will throw Sunday, and determine whether he is ready to ramp up his return from the IL.
Wilson, 31, has made just 10 appearances in his first season with the Mets, and holds a 4.82 ERA.
“I think after that [throwing session] we’re gonna make a decision on where he goes,” Callaway said. “It’ll probably be a rehab assignment since it’s been so long. We’re not sure how long it’ll be, but after that bullpen [session] we’re gonna make a decision and send him.”
Left-hander Luis Avilan, who most recently pitched on May 3, is nearing a return, too, having made three rehab appearances in the minors in the past week, following a bout with elbow soreness.
Avilan has allowed one earned run in three innings of work during his rehab stint, striking out three, with one walk. In 11 appearances during his first season with the Mets, the 29-year-old has recorded a 9.28 ERA.
“It seems like he’s throwing the ball pretty well,” Callaway said. “Now he’s missed so much time now, it’s gonna be a little more extended than others, so we’re still gonna lean on him and get him to a spot where he feels comfortable, and be able to come up here and use him the way we want to. We have some relievers already that when they throw they probably need a day off. I think we need to get Avilan to a spot where he can go back-to-back, maybe three in a row when he gets up here, so we’ll prepare him for that.”
