Josh Edgin attempts comeback from Tommy John surgery with 51s

Edgin, a reliever, was sidelined after undergoing Tommy John surgery last March. Though he couldn’t do anything to help, watching his teammates was his way of showing support.

But now he’s nearly back, and if the Mets go on another deep postseason run, Edgin will likely be more than an observer.

“The situations that you could have been pitching in and stuff like that, it’s tough to watch, but at the same time, the surgery was good for (me) and (I) needed the surgery,” Edgin said. “So I looked at it that way. Just one of those things that happens in life and you have to get over it and go from there.”

After completing a rehab assignment split between Class-A Advanced St. Lucie and Triple-A Las Vegas, he’ll be sticking around with the 51s for the time being as he works his way back to being 100 percent.

“I feel good. Not quite all there but definitely can see it in the future,” Edgin said. “It’s coming along. It’s coming along well. I feel pretty good.”

One big thing he’s working on is regaining his velocity. Edgin threw a scoreless inning Saturday, picking up the save. His velocity was around 89-91, he said, a few miles per hour slower than usual.

“The velocity especially isn’t there,” Edgin said. “That’s about it. Just the velocity and a little bit of recovery, but it’s all coming into play. It’s just taking a little longer.”

Before his injury, Edgin spent parts of 2012-2014 with the Mets, finishing 2014 with a 1.32 ERA in 27 1/3 innings across 47 appearances.

Now back in Triple-A, he’ll have a chance to remaster everything he spent a season away from.

“You don’t necessarily forget, but there’s certain things like mechanics and release points and stuff that are sloppy at times, but that’ll all come with repetition,” he said.

And though he’ll likely make his way back to the Mets in time, right now he gives 51s manager Wally Backman another bullpen option.

Multiple members of the 51s bullpen are among Pacific Coast League leaders in appearances. While he’s in Las Vegas, Edgin gives Backman a lefty. But Backman said he’s not opposed to using him against righties, either.

He’s also not opposed to using him as a closer — like Saturday — if need be.

But more importantly than how he’s used is when he’s used. Backman said he was going to let Edgin dictate when he feels he can pitch.

One major step on his way to making it back to New York is pitching in back-to-back games. So far, he has pitched three innings over three games with the 51s without allowing a run. That’s after posting a 2.08 ERA in 4 1/3 innings over six games at St. Lucie.

“Until he tells me he wants to go back-to-back, I’m not going to make him go back-to-back, so him and I are on the same page,” Backman said. “I want to go off of how he feels and try to rehab him back to the big leagues the best way I can.”

There’s also the fact that Mets bullpen has been strong all year, entering Monday with the fourth-best bullpen ERA at 2.63, including solid performances from their lefties, Logan Verrett and Antonio Bastardo.

But when the time comes, that’s where Backman sees Edgin — back with the Mets, not observing from afar.

“They’ve all pitched well in the big leagues, but we’re talking about a guy that when he got hurt, his era was like 1.3 so he’s pretty … good too,” Backman said. “So I would assume that when he shows the velocity that they want to see, he’ll take somebody’s spot. Something will happen, because he’s not the last guy on a pitching staff in any way.”

Betsy Helfand can be reached at bhelfand@reviewjournal.com. Follow on Twitter: @BetsyHelfand