Siri (fractured tibia) ready to start rehab assignment

WASHINGTON -- Outfielder Jose Siri, who has not played a game at any level in more than four months, is scheduled to begin a Minor League rehab assignment next week. That opens a path for Siri to contribute to the Mets in September.

Siri, 30, was an offseason trade acquisition who was slated to play a significant role in center field. Instead, he fractured his left tibia on April 12 and hasn’t appeared in a game since. At the time of Siri’s injury, the Mets hoped he could return to help them by late June, but the bone healed far slower than expected, leading to a lengthy delay.

At this point, however, Siri has been running and performing baseball activities for weeks and is almost ready for game action.

Once Siri returns, the Mets must decide what to do with him. Since the Trade Deadline, Cedric Mullins and Tyrone Taylor have platooned in center field. While Mullins will continue to start against right-handed pitchers no matter what, Taylor has struggled in limited time against lefties and has a .195 OPS since July 21. His skill set is also redundant to that of Siri, another right-handed hitter and plus defender.

Both players are under team control beyond this season, though Siri has two more years left while Taylor has just one and would be a non-tender candidate this winter. Siri’s return, then, could force the Mets to make a difficult decision regarding Taylor’s future.

But the situation could also change before Siri returns in September, giving Mets officials time to weigh their choices. They’ll be happy simply to have the option to activate Siri, who hit 18 homers and stole 14 bases for the Rays last year.

Another injured Met, Jesse Winker, is not close to returning from a bout of lower back inflammation that has sidelined him since mid-July. The Mets still expect Winker back late this season, but he’s well behind Siri in his progression.