NEW YORK -- Walking into Citi Field on Monday without so much as a wrap on his left hand, Robinson Canó was happy to reveal he avoided the worst after taking a pitch off his left hand in Sunday’s win over the Brewers. Cano, who departed that game in pain, underwent an MRI on Monday that came back negative. That test confirmed the results of an X-ray taken Sunday, which also showed nothing broken.
Cano said he anticipates missing only a couple of games before returning to the starting lineup.
“Thank God everything was negative,” Cano said. “Now I can just focus on playing.”
For Cano, that means mostly waiting for the swelling in his left hand to further subside. Cano planned to try gripping a bat to see if pinch-hitting might be a possibility, though it’s unlikely he will appear in a game before Tuesday at the earliest. For as long as Cano is sidelined, Jeff McNeil will start at second base.
Although Cano has taken two pitches off his hands in the last nine days, he does not plan to make any physical adjustments at the plate to avoid further damage. But Cano is looking into wraps he can wear to make broken bones less of a risk.
“That’s a situation you don’t want to go through again,” said Cano, who fractured his right hand last season with the Mariners. “But thank God everything went well. Now, we’ll just get the swelling down in maybe a couple of days.”
In 26 games since joining the Mets, Cano is batting .270 with three home runs and a .754 OPS.
Checking in
Outfielder Yoenis Cespedes flew to New York to spend some time with the Mets this week, though he did not address the media and the team did not offer an update on his status.
Cespedes is recovering from surgery on both heels, and he is not expected back until after the All-Star break.
From the trainer’s room
Reliever Justin Wilson threw off a mound Monday for the first time since landing on the injured list due to left elbow soreness. Although Wilson is eligible to come off the injured list on Tuesday, he is unlikely to do so until later this week.
Edwin Edicts updated
The Mets may not stay as strict on closer Edwin Díaz’s usage as manager Mickey Callaway initially indicated. Callaway said Monday that while the Mets will continue to limit Diaz to three-out spurts in the ninth inning for now, they may loosen the reins if they’re in playoff contention later this summer.
“We’re always going to have to adjust depending on the situation,” Callaway said.
After declining to use Diaz in a high-leverage situation in the eighth inning of a game earlier this month, Callaway said he would never use Diaz before the ninth until the playoffs. He also indicated he would never use Diaz for more than three outs under any circumstance -- something he now says could change if the Mets are playing meaningful games in September.
Diaz, for his part, insists he will pitch whenever the Mets ask him to -- save situation or otherwise.
“At this point, we feel this is the way to win ballgames,” Callaway said. “Once we get to a point where we’re trying to get in the playoffs, that is the playoffs for me. You have to get in before you can worry about what’s going to happen in the playoffs. So there’s going to come a time where we’re going to have to do everything we can. Guys are going to have to come out of their comfort zone.”