14 articles
NYY •
4 months ago
Blackburn bolsters New York’s relief mix, likely in a versatile swingman capacity, heading into the final five weeks of the season. The 31-year-old righty posted a calamitous 6.85 ERA across 23 2/3 innings (seven appearances, four starts) before being released by the Mets earlier this week.
NYM •
4 months ago
Blackburn has been jettisoned from New York’s 40-man roster to pave the way for top pitching prospect Nolan McLean to ascend to the majors for Saturday’s start against the Mariners. The 31-year-old righty has been limited to just seven appearances (four starts) this season due to injury, finishing with a disastrous 6.85 ERA across 23 2/3 innings of work.
NYM •
4 months ago
Blackburn, back from a shoulder impingement, just posted a 2.42 ERA in 22 1/3 innings over four starts for Syracuse, but the Mets are planning on sticking him in middle relief instead of giving him Frankie Montas’s rotation spot. Blackburn has a 7.71 ERA in four starts and two relief appearances in the majors this season.
NYM •
4 months ago
This is Blackburn’s second straight solid start in Triple-A, striking out six, walking one, and throwing 56 of his 87 pitches for strikes. There is no clear spot for him in the Mets’ rotation right now, and the team is reportedly looking to add starting pitching at the deadline, so it’s unclear what role Blackburn may have for the remainder of the season. Perhaps the Mets could trade him to a team in need of back-end rotation depth.
NYM •
5 months ago
Blackburn’s injury likely occurred during Saturday’s outing against the Pirates in a start that saw an 89-minute rain delay. The right-hander will be out through the All-Star break, but a more concrete timeline should be made available in the coming days.
NYM •
5 months ago
This wasn’t fair to Blackburn, who worked a scoreless first prior to an 89-minute rain delay. Most pitchers aren’t brought back out after that long of a break, but the Mets thought they could risk it, not knowing that Blackburn would give up five straight hits to begin the second. They were all singles, but three were hit at least 106 mph. Blackburn was replaced by José Buttó, and the Mets went on to lose 9-2.
NYM •
6 months ago
It looked like this one might be considerably worse early on, but some bad baserunning hurt the Braves in the first and the wretched bottom-third of the Atlanta order put a stop to what seemed to be building up as a big second inning. Blackburn wound up with 14 whiffs and five strikeouts. He’ll probably get another start against the Pirates this weekend before returning to the bullpen after Sean Manaea comes off the injured list.
NYM •
6 months ago
Things looked like they’d get ugly for Blackburn after Ronald Acuña Jr. launched a 419 foot home run on the first pitch of this game. It still wasn’t good, but also not totally catastrophic. The Braves scratched across three more against him first on the strangest play you’ll ever see – catcher Luis Torrens illegally touched the ball with his mask which automatically let every runner move up a base – then on a sacrifice fly and pass ball. The Mets’ rotation is quite turbulent at the moment with recent injuries to Kodai Senga and Tylor Megill with Frankie Montas’ imminent return. It’s unknown whether Blackburn’s next appearance will be as a starter or a reliever.
NYM •
6 months ago
The smart ballclub let one pitcher throw four innings to finish the 13-5 game today. The other wasted four of its five best relievers. Poor Victor Vodnik, who has already missed six weeks with shoulder inflammation this season, made 36 pitches over two innings after having already pitched Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Blackburn might be good for a couple of more saves like this over the course of the year. There’s the chance he’ll be needed in the rotation at some point, but with Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea on the way back, the Mets would prefer that not be the case.
NYM •
6 months ago
Blackburn was great in five innings against the Dodgers on Monday night, but it appears that didn’t buy him a longer stay in the rotation. The Mets had needed an extra starter with them playing 10 consecutive days, but they will not keep a six-man rotation long-term. Blackburn will be the long reliever and the sixth starter, just in case a spot in the rotation opens up.
Source: Laura Albanese
NYM •
6 months ago
Fantasy managers had every right to be skeptical of Blackburn making his season debut against a team like the Dodgers, but he made a lot of people feel foolish with this outing. He gave up just three hits with one walk, and he was able to strike out three against the loaded Los Angeles lineup, even if it was without Mookie Betts. Blackburn doesn’t have another start scheduled yet, but there’s a pretty good chance he’ll pitch against the Rockies over the weekend.
NYM •
6 months ago
Fantasy managers had every right to be skeptical of Blackburn making his season debut against a team like the Dodgers, but he made a lot of people feel foolish with this outing. He gave up just three hits with one walk, and he was able to strike out three against the loaded Los Angeles lineup, even if it was without Mookie Betts. Blackburn doesn’t have another start scheduled yet, but there’s a pretty good chance he’ll pitch against the Rockies over the weekend.
NYM •
6 months ago
It’s an extremely challenging matchup right out of the gate, which makes it nearly impossible to recommend Blackburn as a viable streaming option at the moment, especially since his next outing is slated for Sunday against the Rockies at Coors Field. The 31-year-old righty figures to get an extended look in New York’s rotation over the next few weeks. He doesn’t offer much strikeout upside, which limits his fantasy appeal to extremely deep mixed leagues and NL-only formats.
NYM •
6 months ago
It’s unclear how long New York will stick with a six-man rotation, but the extra rest can only be a positive for the rest of the starters. The move became necessary with Blackburn’s rehab assignment over after a handful of strong outings at the Triple-A level. Monday’s original scheduled starter, Tylor Megill, will take the ball on Tuesday instead.
Source: SNY Mets