Mets right handed reliever Vic Black was at Citi Field with his Mets teammates, but he is still not close to coming back from the DL.
Black has been taken out of minor league rehab appearances while being treated for a mildly herniated disk on the right side of his neck. It’s causing him nerve irritation.
In his last rehab game, Black’s fastball was only 88 to 90 mph, well off from where he usually throws. It was down 5 mph from his previous rehab appearance for Double-A Binghamton.
Black admitted that he felt tingling on the night of that rehab appearance. But he said that his shoulder is improving and that the herniated disk in his neck is also getting better than it was at the end of last season.
As a result, Black is ruling out surgery as an option. “That doesn’t seem to be even a thought,” said Black.
He will take another week off and then resume throwing most likely on flat ground.
“They were telling me my triceps wasn’t firing completely, which of course causes all the other issues that we felt like were shoulder for so long,” said Black.
This would be great news for the Mets if he can avoid surgery which could possibly get him ready to throw on the mound probably sometime in May if all goes well.
