QUEENS, NY — New York Mets starting pitcher Sean Manaea will face hitters for the first time in his rehab from a strained oblique that has held him out for the first two months of the 2025 season on Thursday at Citi Field, manager Carlos Mendoza disclosed ahead of Wednesday’s series finale against the Chicago White Sox.
Jose Siri, who is rehabbing a broken leg, and “a couple guys” from the Mets’ Single-A affiliate in Brooklyn will participate in Manaea’s session, which should last between 20 and 25 pitches.
Manaea was slated for a late-May return, but a setback in his recovery last month has pushed his season debut into June.
The 33-year-old southpaw was New York’s ace down the stretch last season — his first with the club — going 12-6 with a 3.47 ERA and 184 strikeouts in a career-high 181.2 innings.
Frankie Montas staying in Brooklyn
Right-hander Frankie Montas is remaining with High-A Brooklyn to make his second rehab start on Thursday as he inches toward a return from a high-grade lat strain that has delayed his Mets debut.
He signed a two-year, $34 million pact as David Stearns’ latest reclamation project following a handful of down seasons, but picked up the injury during his first bullpen session of spring training.
The 32-year-old threw 37 pitches in 1.1 innings, allowing two runs on two hits with two walks and a strikeout in his first rehab start on Saturday. Mendoza speculated that he would throw “no more than 35” pitches on Thursday.
Paul Blackburn likely making final rehab start
Last year’s trade deadline acquisition had his rehab start with Triple-A Syracuse rained out on Tuesday and moved to Wednesday, in what will likely be his final minor-league appearance before re-joining the big-league club.
Another spring-training casualty, the right-hander went down just before Opening Day with knee inflammation, which continued a frustrating trend of injuries that was headlined by a back issue that required surgery last September.
Blackburn initially lost out on a starting-pitching job in spring training to Tylor Megill and Griffin Canning, meaning he was to be flexed to the bullpen before the injury bug struck.
His role is currently up in the air, with the Mets potentially moving to a six-man rotation with games in 10 straight days beginning with Friday’s series opener at Citi Field against the Colorado Rockies.
“We have a decision to make there,” Mendoza said. “That’s what we’re going to talk about here. We have an off day tomorrow, then we go through, I think it’s [10 straight games], so we’ll probably look at inserting a six-man [rotation] at some point there. His name is going to be in the conversation.”
