Rick Reed will be returning to the Mets’ rotation for Monday’s game against the Astros, but that was supposed to be Al Leiter’s day to pitch, so he will be moved back a day or two to give his twisted knee a little more rest, according to a knowledgeable clubhouse source.
The clearest indicator that Reed, who partially tore his left calf muscle April 11, would pitch Monday was that he will throw on the side today, putting him in line to pitch two days later. Although Bobby Valentine said he wasn’t exactly sure yet when Reed would pitch, the manager did acknowledge Reed would throw on the side today and not throw tomorrow as originally planned.
“I don’t think he’ll pitch Sunday,” he said. “He’ll throw [today]. We’ll see how he feels and then [make a decision].” Pitchers’ side work is as carefully planned as a start, so consider it done that Reed will start Monday, which means that Masato Yoshii will pitch tomorrow.
Neither the Mets nor Leiter (1-2 with a 4.09 ERA) are concerned about his tender left knee, but with Reed coming back, it was a perfect chance to be cautious with the staff ace. Leiter said before last night’s 7-2 win over the Giants at Shea that he hadn’t heard anything. He also said the knee felt fine, but Valentine wasn’t as clear about that.
“Rick felt very good,” Valentine said. “Leiter’s knee I’m not so sure about. I’ll have to check with him.”
When Reed is activated from the DL the Mets will have to send someone back to the minors. The obvious candidate is lefty reliever Rigo Beltran.
The Mets had considered sending Yoshii down to the minors. With Leiter in a slightly iffy situation, Yoshii will remain with the big league club at least for now.