Mets activate Familia, Wilson, Avilan from IL

NEW YORK -- The Mets activated three relievers from the injured list on Tuesday to make their bullpen whole again. Right-hander Jeurys Familia returned from the IL along with lefties Justin Wilson and Luis Avilán, all of whom were key members of the Mets’ late-inning mix coming out of Spring Training.

The Mets expect all three again to play prominent roles.

“We got these guys for a reason,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “We intend to use them for the reasons we went and got them in the first place. It’s good to have these guys back. These are the guys we knew we could win with.”

Familia returned from his second IL stint due to a Bennett lesion, which has bothered him intermittently throughout the past few years. While sidelined, Familia worked on peppering the strike zone during Minor League rehab games.

Wilson also spent two separate stints on the IL due to a sore left elbow. Although a recent MRI revealed no structural damage in the arm, Wilson will take extra care of the elbow in an effort to stay active the rest of the season.

Avilan also hopes to stay healthy after missing about six weeks due to left elbow soreness radiating from a bone spur. Now that the inflammation is gone from his elbow, Avilan said, he feels no pain.

“We’re going to put them in the roles that we acquired them for, and go out and have a better bullpen,” Callaway said. “That’s what this team needs, and those guys are going to go out and get it done.”

Those three replaced relievers Brooks Pounders, Chris Mazza, Chris Flexen and Stephen Nogosek, all of whom the Mets optioned to Triple-A Syracuse. The team also recalled infielder Luis Guillorme, shifting to a five-man bench with an eight-man bullpen.