SAN DIEGO — Frank Francisco returned to the Mets yesterday, but wasn’t making any promises regarding his health.
The colorful closer, who was activated from the disabled list before the Mets’ 3-1 loss to the Padres at Petco Park, said the left oblique soreness that originally sidelined him on June 24 has subsided. But he admitted to recently dealing with a new problem: stiffness in the right latissimus dorsi muscle of his back.
“It’s something that I hope goes away pitching,” Francisco said. “I’m going to pitch through it and hope it goes away.”
The Mets, desperate for bullpen help, will take a chance on Francisco, who said he tore his latissimus dorsi in 2000 and also sustained an injury to the muscle two years ago.
General manager Sandy Alderson laughed when he was asked about Francisco’s readiness.
“Who knows?” Alderson said. “It’s been an ongoing saga. ‘I’m OK to pitch, but …’ Fill in the blank. You’ve got to make the decision based on how the player is feeling and whether he feels he’s ready to pitch. In this case he thinks he’s ready, so we’re ready to roll him out. ”
Francisco’s return allowed Bobby Parnell to shift back into a setup role, lengthening a bullpen that entered play with a 4.95 ERA — second-worst in the major leagues.Parnell, who converted four of six saves in Francisco’s absence, will still retain partial closing duties: manager Terry Collins said Francisco likely won’t be able to pitch more than two days in a row
Francisco, who said he lost 20 pounds while rehabbing, added he was eager to get the ball and show he’s the closer the Mets thought they were receiving when they signed him to a two-year contract worth $12 million last offseason. Overall. Francisco was 1-3 with a 4.97 ERA this year, but had pitched better in June after a dreadful May.
* Reliever Tim Byrdak had been battling a sore left shoulder for more than a week, and because it had not improved, he told the Mets he would be best served going on the DL to clear roster space for Francisco.
“Knowing the roster move, I didn’t want to leave Terry a man short,” Byrdak said. “I thought the best position to take would be to go ahead and go on the DL and give it time to calm down.”
The move left the Mets with one left-hander — Josh Edgin — in the bullpen. If Byrdak had not been placed on the DL, Elvin Ramirez’s departure to Triple-A Buffalo would have been the likely roster move to activate Francisco from the DL.
Byrdak, who is 2-2 with a 4.40 ERA in 56 appearances, is expected to undergo an MRI exam on Monday. The lefty said he first began experiencing soreness after throwing a slider nine days ago in Arizona.
“I didn’t feel any sharp pain; I didn’t feel any tingling,” Byrdak said. “Structurally, it’s kind of like something rolled in the back of my shoulder. Hopefully, it’s just tendinitis.”
* Johan Santana is scheduled to pitch three innings tomorrow at Single-A Brooklyn against Auburn in a tune-up before rejoining the Mets on their next homestand. Collins said the lefty will either pitch Thursday or Friday at Citi Field against the Marlins or Braves.
Santana, who is recovering from a sprained right ankle, threw a bullpen session on Thursday, according to Collins, and did not have any problems.
* Kirk Nieuwenhuis tore the plantar fascia in his right foot at Triple-A Buffalo, according to general manager Sandy Alderson, and he will be evaluated within the next few days.
* Daniel Murphy did not start last night to rest a sore right wrist after getting drilled by a pitch from the Giants’ Barry Zito on Thursday, but was available to pinch hit. Collins said he also wanted to keep Ronny Cedeno’s bat in the lineup a day after he tied a career high with five RBIs on Thursday.