Mets' Jorge Polanco expects 2-3 more rehab games before MLB return

What happened

Jorge Polanco is feeling better — and he'd like you to know he's not in any particular hurry about it. The Mets' DH/1B, currently on a rehab assignment with Double-A Binghamton, spoke to reporters from the Rumble Ponies dugout on Thursday and offered what amounts to the most optimistic timeline he's given yet: two or three more games, and he expects to be ready to return to the major-league club.

Per Yahoo Sports, Polanco is working back from Achilles bursitis and a wrist issue. He had the night off as Binghamton opened a four-game home stand against the Portland Sea Dogs, but he told reporters he is ready to play the following night. Asked about how he's feeling, Polanco smiled and said he is "feeling way better" — which, given the nature of Achilles bursitis, is the kind of update that earns a smile in return.

Why it matters

The Mets are a club that has not had much to smile about this season, and Polanco acknowledged as much. Per Yahoo Sports, he reflected on New York's difficult stretch in his absence while expressing hope for a turnaround. The source text trails off before capturing the full thought, but the sentiment came through: he is aware the team has struggled, and he wants to be part of changing that.

Polanco told reporters, per Yahoo Sports, that he had no desire to rush back — his words were that he wants to return when he feels good, and that getting healthy so he can help the team is the main thing. He then put a number on it: two or three more games, and he expects to be ready to go up to the majors. That is his own stated expectation, offered from a Binghamton dugout on a night he was not in the lineup. It is not a club announcement, and the Mets have not attached any formal timetable to his activation.

That framing — patient, team-oriented, calibrated — is worth noting. A switch-hitting DH/1B who can contribute at the plate from both sides is a meaningful addition to any lineup, and Polanco's self-reported timeline suggests the Mets could be looking at a return in the near term. Per the report, the decision appears to be driven by how he feels rather than by any external deadline.

The operational mechanics here are worth a brief note. Under general league rules, a position player on a rehab assignment has up to 20 days before the club must either activate him or make another roster decision. Yahoo Sports' report does not specify where Polanco currently stands relative to that window, and the Mets have not announced any corresponding roster move. What the report does make clear is that Polanco believes he is close.

Where the club stands

The Mets are 74-88 (.457), sitting 5th in the NL East and 20 games back in the division. Their Wild Card position is 10th, 14.0 games from the cut line, and they have been eliminated from both the division race and the Wild Card race. They are currently on a one-game losing streak.

Those numbers are the backdrop against which Polanco's return lands. A club that has been eliminated from postseason contention is not playing for October; it is playing for development, for organizational evaluation, and for the kind of professional pride that keeps a clubhouse from going entirely sideways in the final weeks of a long season. Polanco returning healthy and contributing — even in a year that has already closed its playoff door — carries weight for what it signals about the roster heading into the offseason.

The upcoming schedule brings the Miami Marlins to Citi Field for three straight. On Friday, Freddy Peralta is the probable starter against Max Meyer. Saturday lines up Christian Scott against Tyler Phillips. Sunday closes the series with Nolan McLean opposing John King. It is the kind of late-season home series against a fellow non-contender that, in a different year, might feel like a trap game. In this one, it is simply baseball — and potentially the backdrop against which Polanco makes his return.

What we don't know yet

### When exactly does the Mets' roster move happen?

Per Yahoo Sports, the timeline belongs entirely to Polanco's own assessment: two or three more games, and he expects to be ready. The Mets have not made any corresponding announcement, and no activation date has been reported. That distinction matters — a player saying he feels close and a club saying he is ready are two different things, and only one of them has happened here.

The report also does not specify when Polanco's rehab assignment began, which means the remaining window under general league rules is unclear from the available information. Position players on rehab assignments have up to 20 days before the club must act, but nothing in Yahoo Sports' report pins down where Polanco stands in that count.

The nature of his injuries adds a layer of inherent uncertainty. Achilles bursitis and a wrist issue do not follow perfectly linear recovery curves, and the report does not include any medical evaluation beyond Polanco's own characterization that he is feeling way better. That is encouraging. It is not a clearance, and it is worth carrying that distinction forward as the Binghamton schedule plays out.

What to watch

### Is Polanco expected to play in Binghamton this weekend?

Per Yahoo Sports, Polanco said he was ready to play the night after Thursday's off day, putting him back on the field for the Rumble Ponies' home stand against Portland. If he gets into two or three games there without setback, his own stated timeline would put a return to the Mets in the near term — though, again, no club announcement has been made and the report attributes the timetable solely to Polanco himself.

The Mets' upcoming series against Miami at Citi Field is the natural landing spot to watch. With Freddy Peralta, Christian Scott, and Nolan McLean lined up across Friday through Sunday, the rotation is set — but the lineup is where Polanco's name could eventually reappear. A DH/1B who hits from both sides has obvious utility against a three-game series featuring starters from both sides of the mound, and the Mets' current standing gives the club every reason to get a healthy Polanco back into game action.

Polanco himself acknowledged the team's difficult stretch and expressed hope for a turnaround, per Yahoo Sports. Whether two or three more rehab games deliver on that hope is something the Binghamton box scores will answer before the Mets' lineup card does.