The Mets, before Sunday's game at the San Diego Padres, placed Paul Blackburn on the 15-day injured list and recalled Huascar Brazoban from Triple-A Syracuse.
"He went out there, played catch as expected -- stiff, sore -- but this should be a 15-day IL, and then he should be ready to go, fully built up, by the time he's eligible to come off the IL," said Mets manager Carlos Mendoza.
Prior to Saturday's 7-1 win, Mendoza and Blackburn were hopeful that the right-hander would avoid the IL as a scan on Blackburn's arm came back clean after he took a line drive off his pitching arm in Friday's 7-0 loss.
"It wasn't great with just some swelling and tenderness there," Blackburn said Sunday. "I'll hopefully only be out these 15 days and go from there."
"That's where we're working towards right now, just kind of flushing out some more inflammation and go from there," Blackburn added later on in the session, during a follow-up question about his confidence in returning after 15 days.
Blackburn, whom the Mets acquired via a July 30 trade with the Oakland Athletics, has allowed 16 runs (14 earned) on 31 hits (four homers) while striking out 21 and walking seven in 24.1 IP over five starts with New York.
"There's just still, I guess, a lot of stiffness and soreness in there," Blackburn (1-2, 5.18 ERA) said. "Just trying to throw all my pitches, your hand's going to be in different positions and some positions feel worse than others with it right now."
In the meantime, the Mets return Brazoban, whom New York optioned to Triple-A Syracuse just this past Friday, but stayed with the team in San Diego in case Blackburn was placed on the IL.
Brazoban -- another July 30 trade acquisition, from the Miami Marlins -- has allowed seven runs on nine hits (one homer) while striking out 10 and walking seven in 10 IP over nine games with the Mets.
"We will probably need a starter," Mendoza said, as Brazoban joins New York's bullpen. "So those are the conversations we're having, whether we'll keep (David Peterson) on regular rest and then slide the starter behind him -- those are some of the things we're discussing right now, but we're anticipating bringing someone here."
"Obviously, there's a couple of guys there in the mix -- (Tylor) Megill being one of 'em," Mendoza added. "So, yeah, we'll see."