In my last column covering the Mets, I mentioned both Jay Bell and Timo Perez had missed time due to injury. Since then, both players have hit the disabled list as have Mike Stanton and Pedro Astacio.

Bell suffered a groin strain during New York's May 12th game in Colorado. He took a few days off and then tried to rejoin the lineup, but on May 21st he aggravated the injury, causing the Mets to place him on the DL the next day. Bell felt that the groin strain was not going to heal while he was attempting to play and that he wouldn't be able to play effectively while he was injured. I have not seen a timetable for his recovery, however as the groin reportedly is only strained and not torn, I estimate he should be able to rejoin the team in mid-June.

Perez strained his right calf sometime around May 13th and hasn't been available as more than a pinch hitter since that time. The injury cost him a shot at starting while Jeromy Burnitz was out. New York finally decided to place him on the disabled list on May 27th. He's eligible to leave the DL on June 10th, but I expect the Mets will want to make sure he's fully recovered before activating him, given the unfavorable results when he tried to play through this problem. Consequently, I don't expect Perez back before late June.