Mets reliever Trevor May shut down at least four weeks with stress reaction

The New York Mets entered Wednesday afternoon's home series finale against the Atlanta Braves at 18-8 and sitting comfortably atop the National League East standings following back-to-back wins over their division rivals in Tuesday's doubleheader. 

That does not, however, mean the Amazins have not encountered some misfortune during the first week of May. 

It was learned Tuesday that New York relief pitcher Trevor May was heading to the 15-day injured list with what was described as right triceps inflammation that presumably is linked with his early-season struggles on the bump. The team's latest update on the situation offered even more bad news. 

"The imaging on Trevor May revealed a stress reaction on the lower portion of the humerus, which has caused inflammation in the area," the Mets explained in a statement shared by Scott Thompson of SNY. "The immediate prescription is for Trevor to discontinue throwing for approximately four weeks and then re-image the area. At that time, then we will update his plan of care." 

Anthony DiComo of the Mets' website added: "It’s unlikely that May will pitch much, if at all, before the All-Star break." 

When healthy, May often serves as the key setup man for closer Edwin Diaz. However, the 32-year-old admitted around the midway point of April he was dealing with a low-grade triceps strain and has since seen his ERA rise to 8.64 on the campaign. 

"I’m not feeling 100 percent healthy," May said after he surrendered two runs in an inning of work against the Braves on Monday. "Trying to work through some stuff. Not really battling through it. 

"It’s hard to compete when you’re just worried if something is going to hurt when you throw, to the point where I’m not very comfortable throwing my best pitches and taking too much time in between pitches to reset and try to get a little bit of energy to throw another one."

Thompson speculated the Mets could ultimately put May on the 60-day IL to gain an extra 40-man roster spot.