How would Paul Blackburn describe his 2025 season?
“It’s been weird,” the right-hander said Wednesday.
Blackburn was expected to make one more rehab start in Syracuse this week, but he was awoken late Tuesday by someone slamming on his door informing him the Mets were planning on activating him from the IL.
He was rejoining the club before their meeting with the Braves to provide some length out of the bullpen.
And the Mets wasted no time taking advantage of that boost, as Blackburn was immediately tossed into mop-up duty after a nine-run fourth inning implosion put them behind Atlanta on Wednesday night.
He ended up throwing the final five innings, allowing just two runs on one hit and a walk.
“He saved our bullpen tonight,” Carlos Mendoza said. “He was able to finish off the game, gave up two on the hanging breaking ball, but was otherwise pitch efficient — he did his part and saved the bullpen.”
That’s certainly the type of showings the Mets will be hoping for from Blackburn, who was relatively ineffective during his time in the rotation before hitting the IL with a right shoulder impingement.
He also dealt with a stomach bug which setback his rehab a bit.
Exactly how long he’ll stick in the big-league bullpen remains to be seen, though.
The club will need a roster spot to call up top prospect Nolan McLean to make his highly-anticipated big-league debut this weekend against the Mariners, and Blackburn seems like a potential DFA candidate.
The veteran has pitched to a 6.85 ERA over seven appearances on the season.
For now, though, he is ready to help in anyway.
“I was definitely surprised, but it’s good to be back,” he said. “I’ve been on a flight every two days the last month, so I just wanna be somewhere and pitch — if they need me to cover innings, I’ll be there.”
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