Mets Lose Another Key Lineup Contributor As Center Fielder Heads For Injured List
The New York Mets have all kinds of problems, and injuries are one of the biggest ones. They’ve already dealt with the absence of outfielder Juan Soto for two weeks, plus Francisco Lindor is out for what will likely end up being a month, and now they've lost their center fielder.
Luis Robert Jr. is heading to the 10-day injured list with a herniated spinal disc. It’s a painful injury that first started to surface on Monday, and on Wednesday Robert underwent a battery of tests. He received an injection yesterday, and now all the Mets can do is wait, according to an update written by Bill Ladson and Anthony DiComo of MLB.com
“[The doctors] are telling us it should be a short stint on the IL. … We have to wait and see how he responds to the epidural,” Mendoza said.
Robert is actually the third Met to hit the IL in the last week. First there was Lindor, who was officially placed there after missing multiple games, and starter Kodai Senga joined him there due to lumbar spine inflammation.
“I don’t think anyone anticipated something like this, to be honest with you,” Mendoza said. “You know you are going to get hit with injuries and face adversity. To have everything happen at the same time is crazy. But, hey, we have to keep going.”
Contrary to Mendoza's comment, this isn’t all that unexpected. Lindor is 32, Senga is 33, and Robert has always been fragile. He’s an athletic specimen when you see him in uniform, but good luck trying to keep him on the field.
The Mets made a series of moves to balance the roster scale in the wake of the injury, bringing up right-hander Austin Warren and newly-acquired infielder Eric Wagaman from Triple-A Syracuse. Right-hander Carl Edwards Jr. was designated for assignment.
Robert was initially described as day-to-day, which has become a Mets rallying cry of late. But he “didn’t improve much after treatment,” Mendoza said, and that prompted the MRI.
The Mets certainly can’t be faulted for not doing their best to keep the center fielder healthy. They babied Robert in spring training to allow him to strengthen his legs, according to DiComo, and Robert got off to a hot start before joining the rest of the lineup in what’s become a team-wide slump beyond Soto.
“It’s frustrating and he’s super frustrated,” Mendoza said. “He has done everything we asked him to do. We tried to protect him. Give him days off. … It’s frustrating for Luis, for us, but we have to get him back right.”
