According to Terry Collins, Jon Niese threw a bullpen session today and will appear in rehab games starting next week. He will begin his rehab stint with the Gulf Coast Mets. Niese has been off his game this year, pitching to a 4.32 ERA in 14 starts that have spanned 77.0 innings. He has given up 91 hits and 33 walks over that time period, while striking out just 49.
In other pitching related news, Jeurys Familia has started throwing in St. Lucie. He had a surgery to clean up some bone spurs and loose bodies on May 12th, and the recovery period was defined to about six to eight weeks. Familia had allowed four earned runs in 10.1 innings pitched with the Mets this season.
Familia could work his way back to be a force in the back-end of the MLB bullpen by mid-August, while Niese should eventually work his way back into the rotation. The prevailing thought is that Jenrry Mejia will get the last spot in the rotation until Niese returns, while Carlos Torres will get slotted into the ‘pen as a long reliever/spot-starter.
