Mets lead majors in HBPs, but luckily, no serious injuries
Mets' Mark Canha reacts after he was hit by a pitch during an MLB baseball game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Citi Field on Thursday, June 16, 2022. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
To Buck Showalter’s significant and oft-expressed displeasure, the Mets are on pace to make history this season.
They have been hit by pitches 49 times in 67 games. That leads the majors. If they continue to get plunked at this rate, they’d finish with 118 HBPs. That would smash the since-1900 record of 105, set by the Reds — just last year.
Mets hitters are, thus, plenty bruised and sore. But they haven’t sustained any major injuries by getting hit.
“Say it again,” Showalter said, half-joking about superstition and knocking on a table made of something other than wood. “I’ve said many times how lucky we are to get this far with this many — to be on this historic pace — and not have had [a major injury]. Of course, you go tell the people who have been hit and say it’s not serious. I know how sore they are for a while and try to play through it. We’ve been very fortunate so far.”
The Mets’ all-time hit-by-pitch leaderboard is littered with current players. Brandon Nimmo is second at 49 (one behind Michael Conforto). Pete Alonso is fourth at 46, Jeff McNeil sixth at 42.
HBP numbers across the majors have ticked down from recent years. But Showalter is worried about the trend, as it relates to the Mets, negatively affecting his players’ approach at the plate.
“It’s hard enough to hit without going up there and wondering every swing, is this going to hurt or is that going to hurt?” Showalter said this month. “Or am I still going to be as aggressive when 95-, 100-mph pitches are coming close to your body parts?”
Welcome back
Two days after being hospitalized because he was dizzy and had a headache, Eduardo Escobar returned to the Mets’ lineup on Saturday, as he said would be the case, playing third base and batting seventh against the Marlins. . He went 0-for-3 with a strikeout and left five runners on base.
Escobar explained late Friday night that he was prescribed medication to address the recent pressure in his ears, which doctors believe caused the other issues.
Daily deGrom
Showalter clarified that Jacob deGrom (stress reaction in his right scapula) indeed threw his up-and-down bullpen session — more pitches, with a rest in between to simulate the break between innings — as planned on Friday.
DeGrom’s next major step would be to face hitters, probably in a simulated game/live batting practice setting, but the Mets have not said when he’ll do that.
McCann out
James McCann (broken left wrist) will stay with Double-A Binghamton at least through the weekend, Showalter said. He was not in the lineup Saturday despite the plan previously calling for him to catch.
Milestone watch
Pete Alonso’s grand slam Friday night tied him with Lucas Duda for eighth on the Mets’ all-time home runs leaderboard at 125. Up next: Michael Conforto at 132.
Also, Alonso has 63 RBIs. The Mets’ first-half record is 74, set by David Wright in 2006.
Happy Father’s Day
Seth Lugo will leave the team after their series final in Houston on Wednesday, according to Showalter. His wife is due to give birth to their second child. He’ll miss at least part and perhaps all of the series in Miami next weekend.
Extra bases
Showalter expressed pride that there are no Mets relievers among the leaders in appearances. Adam Ottavino is tops on the team with 28, tied (with a bunch of others) for 16th in the majors. “One thing I’ve found through the years is if you ride a hot hand, that hot hand becomes a cold hand,” Showalter said . . . The manager on Francisco Lindor, who tends to pick his brain during games: “I pick his some, too. He doesn’t know it. I like to know what he’s thinking. He likes to talk the game. He is a watcher, an evaluator, going over plays that happen.” . . . The Mets are second in the majors with nine games of at least 10 runs scored. The only team ahead of them? The Yankees, at 11 double-digit games . . . “Cobra Kai” actor Ralph Macchio, a Huntington native, was at Citi Field for Marlins-Mets.
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.
