Paul Blackburn Injury: Shifting rehab to Triple-A

The Mets announced that Blackburn (shoulder) is expected to move his rehab assignment to Triple-A Syracuse on Tuesday.

Blackburn is ready for a tougher test after he opened his rehab assignment last Thursday in the rookie-level Florida Complex League, where he struck out eight and allowed one earned run on three hits and two walks over 3.2 innings. Though the Mets appear to be letting Blackburn build up as a starter during his rehab assignment, he could be ticketed for a long-relief role once he's activated from the 15-day injured list.