It was a scary moment for Mets' fans Monday night as their newly acquired right fielder - Curtis Granderson - ran into the wall at Chase Field trying to catch a fly ball. He was unable to complete the catch as the impact of running into the fence popped the ball right out of his glove. Granderson stood there flexing his hand for several minutes while the Mets trainer - Ray Ramirez - and manager - Terry Collins – analyzed the extent of the damage.
Curtis Granderson was able to continue until the 6th inning when he said that he had started to feel a soreness in his body. Andrew Brown swiftly replaced him as Granderson went to receive x-rays on his forearm, chest, and knees. All x-rays Granderson had taken came back negative and Terry Collins listed him as day-to-day.
Moments later after Granderson was replaced, center-fielder – Juan Lagares strained his hamstring while hustling out a fielders’ choice. Like Granderson, Lagares said he wants to see how he is going to feel in the morning before he makes any decisions. But the Mets are looking at possibly placing Lagares on the disabled list to avoid any chance of further injury.
This would mean the Mets would be without an outfielder until Friday – which is when Chris Young is eligible to return. There are many possibilities the Mets could look at for the next two games before Friday.
Last season, Lucas Duda – who has been red hot of late – was experimented in left field even though he is an everyday first basemen. Duda was never fully comfortable playing the outfield and this experiment only lasted until the end of May when the Mets received Eric Young in a trade. But with New York carrying three first-baseman on the roster right now, Duda could be placed into the outfield to fill in until Granderson or Young is able to return.
The Mets could also go with calling an outfielder up from Triple-A Las Vegas – as they are playing a series in Reno and the player could be ready to go in Arizona by tonight. Kirk Nieuwenhuis – who had tons of MLB experience last season – would be a good option to place in center field until Lagares returns. Veteran 40 year old, Bobby Abreu is also an option to come to the rescue as he is batting .500 with the Triple-A club right now – though - Abreu has a history of being a liability when it comes to his defense.
Whatever New York opts to choose, it will be a short stint. Chris Young is game ready after he went 5-5 with two home runs in his rehab game with Las Vegas. With Young ready to return, Granderson only day-to-day, and Eric Young providing excellent lead off at bats, the New York Mets are able to slowly ease the young Lagares back into action. But his Gold-Glove caliber defense and excellent middle of the line-up bat will be missed.