Ronny Paulino has a blood disorder

MIAMI -- Backup catcher Ronny Paulino has been diagnosed with a blood disorder and will spend time on the disabled list later this month.

"He needs to get his blood count up," Mets general manager Sandy Alderson said. "Right now, we don't know what time frame is involved. It's going to be more than a week."

Paulino is suffering from anemia, typically defined as a decrease in the normal number of red blood cells in the human body. He cannot exercise until his blood count increases, a process requiring him to take medication and iron supplements.

Because Paulino still has eight games remaining on the 50-game drug suspension he received last season, the Mets cannot place him on the disabled list until April 10 -- meaning he won't make his Mets debut until April 26 at the earliest. And the Mets are under no presumptions that he will be ready by even at that point.

"Based on what we know now from the doctors," Alderson said, "getting him back on roughly the [26th] of April would be an optimistic time frame."

Alderson indicated that the Mets will not look to acquire a replacement catcher from outside the organization, meaning Mike Nickeas should remain Josh Thole's primary backup until Paulino is ready to return.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110331&content_id=17234912&notebook_id=17234914&vkey=notebook_nym&c_id=nym

Any misfortune to the Mets (and there's been a lot) makes me happy but I like(d) Ronny. Nice guy. Really sucks for him.