As Carlos Mendoza alluded to over the weekend, today the Mets officially called up Paul Blackburn from the injured list to make the start tonight against the Dodgers. To make room on the 40-man roster, the club optioned Chris Devenski to Triple-A Syracuse.
The Mets acquired Blackburn from the Athletics last July in exchange for former third round pick Kade Morris. The goal was adding some much-needed rotation depth for the playoff push, but injuries kept him from having much of an impact with the team. After posting a 4.41 ERA and a 4.60 FIP in 51 innings for the A’s, he pitched to a 5.18 ERA and a 4.69 FIP in 24 1⁄3 innings for New York. In his fifth start, he was struck by a liner and exited his outing, which began a series of injury setbacks that have kept him on the sidelines.
Blackburn eventually had to have a procedure to fix address a cerebrospinal fluid leak in his spine, and the right-hander would go to miss the remainder of the season and the playoffs. Blackburn returned healthy and ready to go this spring, but right knee inflammation once again forced him to miss some time, but his rehab went off seemingly without a hitch and paved the way for his return.
The Mets have been intentional about giving Kodai Senga an extra day of rest in between starts, and with no off days between his last start (Saturday) and his next start (Friday), the need for a sixth starter became apparent. Blackburn will have every opportunity to earn a spot in the rotation moving forward, especially with Tylor Megill’s recent struggles. The club also figures to get Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas back soon, but it remains to be seen whether the club will move to a permanent six-man rotation to keep all their arms fresh for the later months of the season.