Jeff McNeil hopes to rejoin Mets lineup 'real soon'
Mets leftfielder Jeff McNeil hits the wall after he leaps for a fly ball during the first inning at Citi Field on Thursday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
PHILADELPHIA — As a hard-nosed player who regularly deals with minor physical issues, Jeff McNeil was glad late this week to add another item to that list. That meant he wasn’t hurt in a major way.
A bone bruise on his left knee, the result of a crash into the wall Thursday at Citi Field, kept him out of the lineup Friday against the Phillies. But he said he was feeling much better and, at least for the time being, avoided the injured list.
“I thought it was much worse,” he said. “When I stood up, it didn’t feel like my knee was too stable. That’s kind of what was so scary. But to have all the good news come back, it’s really relieving and hopefully I’ll be playing real soon again.”
Manager Luis Rojas noted that McNeil was “walking a little better” but still had to get treatment that would determine his potential availability off the bench.
McNeil tends to play defense with reckless abandon, and he knows the risks. But he has no designs on changing his style. Maybe that makes it calculated reckless abandon.
“I’m going to keep doing that. I play the game hard, I play the game the right way,” he said. “If there’s a ball that I need to go to the wall to catch, I’m going to do it. Yesterday, it saved a couple runs. I’m never going to change, it’s who I am as a player. It’s just who I’m going to be.”
Rojas added: “That’s how he plays, and it's tough to just take the aggressiveness away from a guy to play safe. He might even get hurt by doing that.”
Cano returns
Just 11 days after suffering a Grade 2 groin strain, Robinson Cano returned from the IL to serve as the Mets’ DH.
Rojas said he won’t hesitate to put Cano at second base in addition to seeing time at DH.
“He’s going to be part of that rotation,” Rojas said. “We have to get him on the field as well. Robbie is a good defender for us, he can do a lot of things and we can use that DH spot for other guys to keep them fresh.”
To make room for Cano, the Mets optioned reliever Drew Smith (3.00 ERA in seven appearances) to the alternate training site in Brooklyn.
