Injuries & Moves: Nimmo, Raley eye Opening Day
LATEST NEWS
March 22: C Francisco Álvarez optioned; C Nick Meyer reassigned to Minors camp
Expected to start the season in the Minors, top prospect Álvarez was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse after going 3-for-28 with one RBI and 10 strikeouts this spring. The move signals the Mets' intentions to go with a platoon of Omar Narváez and Tomás Nido behind the plate. More >>
March 18: LHP José Quintana has bone graft surgery
Quintana underwent bone graft surgery Friday night to repair a stress fracture in his left rib and will not return to the Majors until at least July.
"They were able to clear some of the area that had the lesion packed with some healthy bone that doctors took out of his left hip," said general manager Billy Eppler. "He will be traveling back to Miami. He is in good spirits and a good spot. It will probably be a week, and then we'll start moving him around a little bit more."
March 17: Claimed RHP Dennis Santana off waivers from the Twins
Santana could help a bullpen that has been hit by injuries to Edwin Díaz, Brooks Raley, Bryce Montes de Oca and Sam Coonrod. Santana appeared in six spring games for the Twins and had a 4.50 ERA. The Twins picked him off waivers from the Braves on Feb. 26.
March 16: RHP Edwin Díaz undergoes surgery for torn right patellar tendon, likely to miss season
As members of Team Puerto Rico celebrated around Díaz on Wednesday after his strikeout of Teoscar Hernández advanced them to the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic, Díaz fell to the ground, clearly in pain and unable to move his right leg. He left the field in a wheelchair.
Díaz underwent imaging the next day which revealed a tear in his right patellar tendon. He had surgery later on Thursday to repair the tear. The procedure typically has an eight-month recovery time, although general manager Billy Eppler said some athletes can return in six months. Díaz is likely to miss the 2023 season. Read more >>
INJURY UPDATES
CF Brandon Nimmo (right ankle and knee sprain)
Expected return: TBD
Nimmo's spike caught in the dirt as he slid into second base during a March 17 game against the Marlins, injuring his right knee and ankle. He stayed on the ground in obvious pain for a few minutes before limping off the field. Subsequent imaging revealed low-grade sprains in his right knee and ankle, which won’t necessarily knock him out for Opening Day. Nimmo put in full days of baseball activities on March 21 and 22 and hopes to play in Grapefruit League games on March 25 and 26. If he can do so, Opening Day won’t be an issue for him. (Last updated: March 22)
LHP Brooks Raley (left hamstring strain)
Expected return: Late March
Raley withdrew from the World Baseball Classic on March 10 due to a low-grade left hamstring strain, which he suffered while working out in preparation for the event. He returned to Port St. Lucie on March 14 and restarted a throwing program that day, then threw live batting practice on March 22. Raley plans to appear in at least one Grapefruit League game before camp breaks. While the Mets aren’t committing to have him available on Opening Day, Raley sees that as “a strong possibility” and continues to progress in that direction. (Last updated: March 22)
LHP José Quintana (lesion on rib)
Expected return: July at the earliest
Midway through Spring Training, Quintana was diagnosed with a small stress fracture in his fifth rib on his left side. Subsequent testing revealed a lesion in the area, which was benign but prompted doctors to recommend bone graft surgery to repair the rib. Quintana successfully underwent surgery on March 17. (Last updated: March 18) More >>
RHP Edwin Díaz (torn right patellar tendon)
Expected return: 2024
Díaz suffered a complete patellar tendon tear in his right knee during Puerto Rico's celebration after defeating the Dominican Republic on Wednesday night to advance to the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic. Díaz underwent surgery to repair the tendon on Thursday afternoon in Florida, with the procedure performed by Dr. David W. Altchek. (Last updated: March 16) More >>
RHP Sam Coonrod (right lat strain)
Expected return: TBA
After reporting right lat soreness following his outing against Washington on March 14, Coonrod underwent imaging the next day that revealed a high-grade lat strain. He had been in contention to make the Mets' Opening Day roster as a reliever, and he had pitched five scoreless innings in spring. There is no timetable so far for his return. (Last updated: March 15)
RHP Bryce Montes de Oca (stress reaction in right elbow)
Expected return: Possibly April
The hard-throwing Montes de Oca departed in the ninth inning of a March 12 outing after walking three consecutive batters and experiencing a velocity drop, but an MRI taken the next day revealed no ligament damage. Montes de Oca will be shut down for three to four weeks, after which period the Mets will re-evaluate him. He could conceivably restart a throwing program by the end of March.
“Given what happened,” Montes de Oca said, “I think it’s a pretty good-case scenario.” (Last updated: March 14)