It was previously said that New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor would need “a miracle” to be available for Tuesday’s series opener at the Atlanta Braves as he worked to return from the lingering back injury that’s kept him out of action since Sept. 15.
Lindor then made his way onto the on-deck circle in the top of the ninth inning of Tuesday’s 5-1 loss but did not get a chance to hit. Following the defeat, first-year Mets manager Carlos Mendoza indicated Lindor could be good to go as soon as Wednesday evening.
“He could be in play,” Mendoza said about Lindor’s status for the next Mets game, as shared by Alex Smith and Phillip Martinez of SNY. “He kept hitting throughout the game, sat down a couple of times, went into the cage and was moving around and felt good enough to say, ‘Give me an at-bat there if it gets there.'”
As Mark W. Sanchez of the New York Post pointed out, it remained unclear as of Wednesday morning when the Mets will next take the field. Rain caused by Tropical Storm Helene could wipe out Wednesday’s game between the Mets and Braves and will almost certainly prevent the clubs from facing off in Atlanta on Thursday. New York then ends the season with a three-game tilt at the Milwaukee Brewers that gets underway on Friday.
The 87-70 Mets began Wednesday in possession of the National League’s second wild-card playoff spot and a half-game up on the Arizona Diamondbacks in the standings. Atlanta trailed New York by a single game at that time, but the Mets know they’ll clinch a postseason berth if they earn two victories over the Braves at some point between Wednesday and Monday evening.
Lindor became the club’s emotional leader and most valuable player amid its surprising summer resurgence. According to ESPN stats, he leads the team among qualified players with 601 at-bats, 163 hits, a .271 batting average, a .342 on-base percentage and 103 runs scored. Over 148 games, he’s recorded 31 home runs and 86 RBI.
“He’s not going to put himself at risk,” Mendoza added about Lindor. “He’s not going to put the team at risk. So, whenever [he tells] us that, ‘I’m a player for you,’ then we have a decision there.”
It remains to be seen when Mendoza will have to make such a decision.
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