New York Mets Closer Inches Closer To Return From Injured List

The New York Mets may be able to use their embattled reliever sometime this week when he’s eligible to return.

May 6, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; New York Mets relief pitcher Edwin Diaz (39) pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. / Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz made his second rehab appearance on Sunday, as expected, and it could lead to an activation next week, according to MLB.com.

Díaz threw a scoreless inning for the High-A Brooklyn Cyclones, giving up a walk and a strikeout. He did the same for Brooklyn earlier in the week, as he gave up one hit and struck out two in a scoreless inning.

Now, the question — is Díaz ready for a recall?

MLB.com reported that the reliever could be back with the Mets on Tuesday when they return from London and start a series with the Miami Marlins at Citi Field.

He is eligible to be activated on Monday, but the Mets will likely wait until pre-game on Tuesday to make a move.

The same goes for catcher Francisco Alvarez, who played in the same game as Díaz and is eligible to be activated. He also played for the Cyclones on Sunday after going back to Venezuela to tend to a personal matter.

Díaz landed on the 15-day injured list on May 29 with a right shoulder impingement. That may have explained his struggles, which led to a demotion out of the closer spot last month.

He blew three of his last four save opportunities and had a 9.58 ERA in his last 10 appearances before the injury.

For the season the 30-year-old right-hander is 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA in 2024, with five saves in nine opportunities along with two holds. He had 30 strikeouts and seven walks in 20 innings.

The Mets are eager to get the All-Star reliever after he missed all of 2023 with an injury he suffered playing in the World Baseball Classic with Puerto Rico.

His track record is as one of the game’s best closers. He has 210 career saves in the Majors, beginning with his rookie season with Seattle in 2016. Since joining the Mets in 2019, he had 26 saves in 2019, six in 2020, 32 in 2021 and 32 in 2022.

He has won both the Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman reliever of the year awards and saved a Major League-best 57 games in 2018 with Seattle.