New York Mets pitcher Carlos Carrasco's return delayed until late May

ST. LOUIS --Carlos Carrasco was shifted to the 60-day injured list by the New York Mets on Thursday, a surprise move that pushes back his season debut until May 28 at the earliest.

The 34-year-old right-hander has been sidelined by an injured right hamstring since spring training and had been making progress. He threw a simulated game Tuesday at the Mets' spring training complex in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and the team said Wednesday that Carrasco was starting a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment this weekend.

Mets manager Luis Rojas said after Thursday's win over the Cardinals that Carrasco was still testing the hamstring and the team followed the recommendation of its performance staff.

"We reassessed the timeline, and there's still some things we want to test, from on-the-field stuff, pitching, competing, game-speed stuff, everything that's going to come into play when he's activated with us," Rojas said. "So probably one or two more outings before he joins us."

Right-hander Jordan Yamamoto was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse, and the Mets selected the contract of right-hander Tommy Hunter from the Triple-A farm team.

Carrasco was acquired in January from Cleveland along with All-Star shortstop Francisco Lindor. He was put on the 10-day IL on April 1, a move retroactive to March 29.