Mets halt Jorge Polanco's minor league rehab assignment and send him back to New York for tests

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Jorge Polanco’s minor league rehabilitation assignment was halted Saturday because of ankle soreness and the Mets first baseman will return to New York for further evaluation.

Polanco has been sidelined since mid-April with left Achilles bursitis. He has been playing rehab games in the minors recently, and the Mets initially indicated he might come off the injured list and rejoin the team this weekend in San Diego.

That timeline was pushed back, but Polanco was supposed to play Saturday for Triple-A Syracuse before getting scratched.

“We felt like we needed to continue to build him up,” New York manager Carlos Mendoza said before his team’s 3-2 loss to the Padres.

The club wants Polanco to be able to reach certain thresholds before activating him.

“Four at-bats as a DH, seven innings on defense, at least,” Mendoza said. “We won’t see him here in San Diego.”

In his first season with the Mets, the 32-year-old Polanco batted .179 with one homer, two RBIs and a .532 OPS in 14 games before landing on the 10-day injured list April 18, retroactive to April 15, with a bruised right wrist. But it’s the Achilles bursitis that has been bothering him since very early in the season that is still keeping him on the IL.

Polanco signed a $40 million, two-year contract with the Mets as a free agent in December to replace Pete Alonso at first base and potentially serve as the team’s designated hitter on occasion.

Polanco began his rehab assignment May 27 and played three games at Double-A Binghamton before playing three more with Syracuse. He was 2 for 12 overall with a home run, three RBIs and five walks.

In another move, the Mets released left-hander Anderson Severino.

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