The New York Mets did not receive good news on Thursday afternoon as Michael Cuddyer told manager Terry Collins that his knee was not getting any better. Cuddyer stated that he was experiencing more and more pain in his knee and that he may not be able to play. 

Cuddyer was able to see a doctor on Thursday as well, but the team has not yet received any results back. This injury has been going on for some time now as Cuddyer has just 31 plate appearances in the month of July. The scary part about this situation is that no one knows what to expect from this injury.

This writer's recent article entitled “50 Shades Of Blue And Orange” mentioned that the New York Mets’ front office personnel and training staff have struggled over the years to get the correct diagnoses of injuries. The most recent player to be shut down was left-handed pitcher Steven Matz, who was experiencing some discomfort in his lat muscle prior to his start against the L.A. Dodgers earlier this month, but he was able to pitch through it. Soon after, Matz was shut down for three weeks, and now he will be re-examined next week.

The sketchy thing about this situation with Cuddyer is that he is clearly showing discomfort and telling the staff, but they are delaying putting him on the disabled list for some unknown reason. However, if and when Cuddyer does in fact hit the DL, where do the Mets look for help?

There has been talk that the Mets are in market for an outfielder, but, of course, it has to be at the right price. Veterans such as Ben Zobrist and Martin Prado come to mind because they can play all over the diamond, but other names such as Carlos Gomez and Justin Upton have also surfaced. However, the way the Mets have gone about business around the trade deadline in last few years can be a sign that those players may just be pipe dreams. But now where does that leave them?

Just a few days ago, Collins was asked if the Mets would bring up prospect Michael Conforto from Double-A Binghamton if, in fact, Cuddyer did need a DL stint. Collins immediately said no and that Conforto was not even an option. Then, less than 24 hours later, the Mets suddenly changed their minds and said Conforto could be up in the Bigs as soon as Friday. As confusing as the Mets are in general with how they handle things, Conforto would absolutely be the correct move here.

One reason is that bringing Conforto up would not cost the Mets anything as they obviously would not have to give anyone up to get him. Another reason is as simple as asking the question, "Why not?” Over the last few seasons, the Mets have been very shy and hesitant to bring players up, especially if they are not at least in Triple-A. But this New York Mets team desperately needs offensive help no matter where it comes from.

Prospect Michael Conforto has been killing it lately in Double-A as he his currently hitting .321 in 44 games, with 5 home runs and 26 RBI's. He has also been able to show his knowledge of the strike zone as he has drawn 23 walks, which have added to his .406 on-base percentage. 

A final reason to bringing Conforto up is that it can only help the Mets. Their lineup cannot get any worse, and it is time to finally take a chance. Just look at what the San Francisco Giants did last season. They knew they had a good player in Joe Panik, but surely they could admit at some point that even they did not expect him to play that well and become such a prominent part of their lineup. Conforto may not necessarily do the same thing as Panik, but why not try? 

Bringing Conforto up could not only help their lineup, but it will excite the fan base. Mets fans have gone through some dark times ever since the Mets blew their division lead to the Marlins in 2007. This fan base has gotten some excitement back with this young pitching staff, and Conforto could be the next position player to add to that excitement. He may not come up and hit .300 or smack 15 home runs from now until the end of the season, but he can only help.