Dedniel

Núñez

Núñez is still in the recovery phase of his second career Tommy John surgery and is expected to miss the bulk of the 2026 campaign. Shifting him to the 60-day injured list clears a spot on the Mets’ 40-man roster for the addition of Ben Rortvedt on Sunday.

Núñez is out for the season after Tommy John surgery earlier this month. He’ll aim to return in the second half of 2026.

Núñez will undergo his second career Tommy John surgery after hitting the shelf last week with a right elbow sprain. Given the timing of the procedure, the hard-throwing 29-year-old could wind up missing the entire 2026 season.

Núñez will be out of action for at least the next couple of weeks with the sprain, but the 29-year-old will likely have a longer absence than that minimum stint. Rico Garcia had his contract selected from Syracuse to take his place on the roster.

The Mets wanted to add a couple of fresh arms to their bullpen prior to Thursday’s battle against the Braves, so Núñez will get another opportunity to pitch in the big leagues. The 29-year-old hurler has posted a 7.36 ERA, 1.91 WHIP and a 3/6 K/BB ratio across 3 2/3 innings in five appearances for the Mets this season.

Núñez returns to the minors after struggling to a bloated 7.36 ERA with a 3/6 K/BB ratio across 3 2/3 innings (five appearances) after being recalled earlier this month from Triple-A. The hard-throwing 28-year-old righty is extremely talented and figures to return at some point in a few weeks.

Blackburn has already made four rehab starts, so he will need to be reinstated from the injured list after his start on Friday. As of now, there is no room in the Mets’ rotation, so the most likely outcome is that Blackburn would serve as a multi-inning reliever, which could bump Dedniel Nunez back to the minors.

The 28-year-old hurler joined the Mets’ bullpen prior to the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader against the Cardinals. He had made 10 appearances at Syracuse prior to his promotion, registering a 3.48 ERA, 2.03 WHIP and a 13/7 K/BB ratio over 10 1/3 innings.

Núñez was brought along slowly this spring after finishing last season on the shelf with a forearm injury. The hard-throwing 28-year-old righty will get some extra time to ramp-up out of the spotlight at Triple-A Syracuse. He figures to rejoin New York’s bullpen mix at some point in April.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza made it official that Reed Garrett, José Butto and Danny Young will open the year in New York’s bullpen. The decision to jettison Walton leaves Brett Baty and Luisangel Acuña as the Mets’ primary bench options, but they haven’t officially made the team yet, added Mendoza. It also means that A.J. Minter and Dedniel Nuñez are probably headed to the injured list.