The Mets have transferred pitcher Kodai Senga to the 60-day injured list, meaning the earliest he can return to big league action is the end of May.
Senga has been sidelined since late in spring training due to a posterior capsule strain in his shoulder.
Manager Carlos Mendoza said there has been no setback to Senga's timeline.
“Obviously needing the roster spot and where he’s at, not a setback and nothing wrong with him, it’s just we knew it was gonna take some time,” Mendoza said after Wednesday’s game was postponed due to the threat of rain.
“And with him still throwing flat ground and things like that – he hasn’t even gotten on the mound – so he’s gonna be a few weeks before we see him.”
The move came as the Mets called up left-hander Tyler Jay and needed to make space for him on the 40-man roster. By transferring Senga from the 15-man IL to the 60-day IL, he no longer counts against the 40-man roster -- so the club was able to add Jay without running the risk of losing a player.
As far as Senga's recovery, Mendoza said they had “been slow playing it from the beginning."
“We took that extra couple of weeks before he started playing catch [at the end] of spring training,” he said. “And there’s nothing new to it, it’s just more like where he’s at, where we’re at…. Everything stays the same.”
Senga began playing catch on back-to-back days at the start of April, which Mendoza said at the time was "a big deal."
"For him to go up there and play catch on back-to-back days is a pretty big step for him," Mendoza said on April 1.
Senga came out of that back-to-back session feeling good and the skipper added earlier this month that he is “slowly moving in the right direction.”
Now on the 60-day IL, the earliest the right-hander can return from the IL is May 27.
The expectation when Senga initially suffered his injury was that he would return at some point in May or possibly June. But Mendoza said on Wednesday that "it's too early to tell" if he will be back as soon as he is eligible.
"He hasn't even touched the mound," he said. "We still gotta clear some hurdles here. And then we'll see how he responds once he gets on the mound and then bullpen, live BP, facing hitters and things like that. So, too early to tell."
Right-hander Dedniel Nunez, who was impressive in his big league debut Tuesday in Atlanta, was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse in a corresponding move to add Jay, 29, to the 26-man roster for his potential big league debut.