Blackburn is expected to start the season working as a reliever, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

EDGE Analysis

The Mets dealt with some injuries to their starting rotation during spring training, but Blackburn was unable to take advantage of the opportunity with eight earned runs allowed and a 9:6 K:BB over 12.2 frames in the Grapefruit League. Blackburn could still make some starts at some point this summer, but it doesn't seem like he'll be a consistent rotation piece for New York.