New York Mets closer Jeurys Familia will begin a minor league rehab assignment on Tuesday according to manager Terry Collins who was speaking to reporters before Monday’s game.
Familia, who has been recovering from surgery in May to repair an arterial clot in his right shoulder, threw a bullpen session last week. It was his first time throwing from a mound since his surgery.
Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said last week, that Familia could return as soon as the end of August so today’s news certainly seems like a step in that direction.
Familia went 1-1 with three saves and a 3.86 ERA before being landing on the disabled list on May 5. That was after first serving a 15 game suspension to start the season for violating the league’s domestic violence policy.
In Familia’s absence, the Mets had turned to Addison Reed as the team’s closer, but recently-acquired AJ Ramos has been serving in that role since Reed was traded.
During the 2016 season, Familia posted a 2.55 ERA over 78 appearances with a league-high 51 saves and he has been a consistent force out of the pen since 2014.
