In what has already been an injury-riddled season for the right-handed starter, New York Mets pitcher Paul Blackburn is on the team's 15-day injured list after yet another setback. Blackburn will miss his upcoming start for New York due to a bruised right hand.

He was struck on the hand while shielding his head from David Peralta's 100-mph line drive in the Mets' 7-0 loss to the San Diego Padres on Friday. Blackburn left the game in the third inning.

However, after a productive session in New York's bullpen on Sunday, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza is confident his right-handed starting pitcher will be ready to return after the duration of his time on the IL.

“He went out there, played catch [Sunday]. As expected, stiff, sore,” Mendoza said, per ESPN. “He should be ready to go, fully built up by the time he's eligible to come off the IL.”

Blackburn was traded to the Mets from the Oakland Athletics in late July. He's 1-2 with a 5.18 ERA in his five starts for the Mets.

Mets lose 3-2 to Padres in series finale

J.D. Martinez (28) rounds the bases after hitting a home run against the San Diego Padres during the fourth inning at Petco Park.
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The Mets lost 3-2 to the Padres on Sunday, which evened their four-game series 2-2 over the weekend. San Diego tied the game 2-2 in the bottom of the eighth, eventually setting up Padres rookie Jackson Merrill's walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.

After solo home runs by J.D. Martinez and Mark Vientos, Mets' reliever Joe Butto gave up two runs in the eighth before closer Edwin Diaz (5-2) picked up his second loss of the regular season as Merrill's walk-off homer handed the Mets their third loss in six games.

While trailing the Atlanta Braves by 2.5 games in the NL Wild Card race, the Mets' news surrounding Blackburn is worrisome for the foreseeable future. A stress reaction in Blackburn's right foot caused him to miss two and a half months before he was traded to New York. And being traded from the A's, he hasn't found his footing with the Mets. Blackburn admits it's been a frustrating transition from Oakland.

“I had eight starts to begin the year and ended up fracturing my foot. Then, I came back from that, and I had five starts,” Blackburn said, per the New York Post. “I feel like I haven't been able to get into a rhythm or get into a routine and getting a chance to help a team get into the playoffs and then take a line drive off the hand, so it's a little frustrating.”

New York begins a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday.