Mets' Brandon Nimmo, Mark Canha test positive amid COVID outbreak, sources say
Mets' Brandon Nimmo (9) is safe at first before Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Johan Camargo can make the tag on a pickoff attempt on April 13, 2022. Credit: AP
The Mets dealt with a COVID-19 outbreak in the hours before their first home game of the season on Friday, losing starting outfielders Brandon Nimmo and Mark Canha to positive tests, sources said.
Bench coach Glenn Sherlock and another staff member also tested positive, meaning the Mets had at least four people contract the disease, sources said. Buck Showalter confirmed that a coach had tested positive, but declined to reveal any other details.
The Mets called up outfielder Nick Plummer and infielder Matt Reynolds from Triple-A Syracuse to replace Nimmo and Canha, who went on the injured list, which in the case of COVID requires no minimum length of stay.
Neither Nimmo nor Canha were showing symptoms as of late Friday morning, according to a person familiar with their conditions.
Canha’s wife, Marci Canha, wrote on Twitter that he is vaccinated. Nimmo declined to discuss his status during spring training.
“We’ve taken every precaution possible, we are vaccinated and boosted, all in efforts to keep our kids, our family and friends healthy, but there’s a lot out of our control now,” Marci Canha tweeted in part. “I’m thankful that Mark is doing fine and we hope to be able to come watch our favorite guy do his thing on the baseball field soon.”
MLB’s health and safety protocols call for a 10-day absence as a baseline for individuals who test positive. But there are circumstances under which they can return sooner than that, no matter the vaccination status. That requires two negative tests, as well as approval from a joint committee of MLB and Players Association officials plus medical experts.
The first COVID case was a staff member, whom the Mets have not identified. That triggered a wave of additional tests when many players and coaches were deemed close contacts, followed by three more positives.
Vaccinated close contacts do not have to quarantine. Unvaccinated close contacts are required to quarantine for five days.
“It’s what we do. You prepare for things like this. Nobody cares about your problems. They’re all glad you got them,” Showalter said. “The contingency plans were put in place as early as we could, as soon as we heard something . . . Everybody in our society, in our world — why not us? It’s part of life in the 2020s, let alone baseball. We’re dependent on each other to continue to do the right thing.”
DeGrom update
Jacob deGrom, in town for the day to partake in Citi Field’s Opening Day festivities, said he is due for a follow-up MRI around April 25, several days before the four-week mark of his shutdown. He is sidelined with a stress reaction in his right shoulder blade.
While rehabbing at the Mets’ Port St. Lucie, Florida, complex, deGrom recently had a bone scan, which confirmed the original diagnosis.
Walker progressing
If Taijuan Walker (right shoulder bursitis) makes a four-inning rehab start in the middle of next week, as he hopes, he would be lined up to rejoin the rotation in the last week of April. He played catch for a second consecutive day Friday and is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Sunday.
Extra bases
Lefthander David Peterson will start on Sunday against the Diamondbacks, filling in for Walker . . . Plummer made his major-league debut Friday, playing rightfield in the ninth inning. He had been with the team as a member of the taxi squad during its season-opening road trip, left to join Syracuse on Wednesday, homered in his debut there on Thursday and was called up to the majors Friday . . . Showalter on Citi Field: “It’s an electric place when you have days like this.” . . . The Mets included Islanders icon Mike Bossy, who died Friday, in their pregame in-memoriam tribute.
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
