While the Mets are expecting the luxury of reinforcements to their starting rotation in the near future, it appears they'll need to wait even longer for a pair of injured outfielders to return to uniform.
During his latest homestand press conference, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns revealed Friday that bench players Jesse Winker and Jose Siri are currently on different ends of the recovery spectrum. And the positive update was given to Winker, not Siri.
In regard to Winker, who landed on the injured list in early May with a right oblique strain, Stearns said he's progressing in ramp-up activities but still "multiple weeks" away from beginning a rehab assignment. The timetable checks out, considering that Winker was initially projected to miss 6-8 weeks. Only time will tell how long his eventual rehab stint lasts.
As for Siri, the news was far less encouraging. Stearns said he recently suffered "a little bit of a setback" in his recovery from a fractured left tibia, as imaging showed the bone hadn't healed to the Mets' liking. He's now shut down from all baseball activities. Siri fouled a ball off his shin on April 12, and had yet to return to the field for any drills or workouts. His intial recovery window was 8-12 weeks.
Meanwhile, on the bullpen front, reliever Brooks Raley is close to taking another step forward in his long journey back to the mound. Stearns said the veteran lefty could start a rehab assignment as early as next week, with a full ramp-up period that could last 30 days. The Mets signed Raley in late April, nearly a year after he underwent Tommy John surgery.