PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Curtis Granderson is still not entirely sure what caused the right eye infection that knocked him out of a week's worth of Grapefruit League games. But he's plenty thankful that it cleared up quickly, allowing him to debut Wednesday with a two-hit performance in the Mets' 4-4 tie with the Yankees.
Testing contact lenses in his eyes Tuesday for the first time since doctors diagnosed him with a possible case of conjunctivitis, Granderson returned to the field one day later.
"My eyes are fine," he said. "There was really no issue there. It was just one day everything looked really bad, and we had to get it taken care of. But there was no discomfort or soreness or [lack of] focus or anything like that. My vision's not too far off without my contacts, so once I throw them on it just sharpens everything up. It was great to get back and play."
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Despite missing the Mets' first seven games, Granderson estimates he's "not too far behind" where he normally would be at this point in spring. The Mets' starting right fielder will play again Thursday (1:10 p.m. ET on MLB.TV), with manager Terry Collins planning to give him an extra at-bat in most of his upcoming games. In that manner, Granderson should be able to catch up to his teammates' plate appearance totals by late March.
Certainly, the Mets need him to be in vintage form come April. Leading off in 140 of his 157 games last year, Granderson hit .259 with 26 home runs.
"At the end of the season, you break it down, he had to be our MVP from the job he did," Collins said. "Getting on base, creating power, playing right field, he was just out there every night."