Mets star hoping injection will speed recovery

Francisco Lindor’s bad back has kept him out of the Mets’ lineup for each of the team’s last five games, but the star shortstop is showing some positive signs of recovery. Lindor told reporters (including MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo) that he received a facet joint injection on Thursday, which was meant to help quell or at least reduce the back discomfort that Lindor had been trying to play through for most of September prior to this recent shutdown period.

“I’m trying to do whatever it takes to come back as soon as I can,” Lindor said. “Without [the injection]…it didn’t feel like I could get back sooner rather than later. With the injection, they said there was a possibility that can happen. I believe in the trainers. I trust them, what the input is. And we went and got it done.”

The initial results of the injection are encouraging, as Lindor said he was able to bend over to tie his shoes without feeling any pain on Friday. He was also able to take part in some limited baseball activities such as a batting practice, and a wider range of workouts are slated for Saturday. It isn’t entirely out of the question that Lindor could even play in today’s game with the Phillies (probably as a designated hitter in order to limit any extra strain on his back), but both Lindor and the Mets are naturally trying to be cautious in trying to prevent any greater injury.

Missing Lindor at this crucial time of the season has added even more drama to the Mets’ bid for a playoff berth, though New York has managed a 4-1 record in the MVP candidate’s absence. The 85-69 Mets hold a two-game lead over the Braves for the last wild card spot, while also remaining not far behind the Diamondbacks (86-68) and Padres (88-66) for a higher wild-card position. The Mets’ fate might hinge on a critical three-game set in Atlanta beginning on Tuesday, and the club would obviously love to have Lindor available for that de facto playoff series.

Another late-season reinforcement could also emerge for the Mets in time for their last series of the regular season and then potentially into the playoffs. Kodai Senga will make a rehab start for Triple-A Syracuse Saturday and is set to throw a maximum of 35 pitches over one or two innings of work. As both manager Carlos Mendoza and president of baseball operations David Stearns told reporters (including the New York Post’s Mike Puma), should Senga emerge in good shape from that rehab outing, he could work as an opener at some point during the Mets’ series with the Brewers that begins on Friday.

“These situations are always fluid,” Stearns noted, and Mendoza said that Senga could potentially work in more of a traditional relief role than in working as an opener. Working out of the bullpen might better position Senga for inclusion on a postseason roster because (on paper) the Mets wouldn’t have need for an opener in a playoff game, though it is also fair to wonder if New York would even feel comfortable having Senga on a playoff roster considering that he has barely pitched all season.

A capsule strain and a triceps injury delayed Senga’s 2024 debut until July 26, and in the right-hander’s very first game back, Senga suffered a severe left calf strain that immediately sent him back to the 60-day injured list. Sept. 25 is the earliest date that Senga can be activated, and pitching Saturday for Syracuse should line him up for a potential trip to a big-league mound on Friday in Milwaukee.

Senga was one of the stories of the 2023 season, as his first year in Major League Baseball resulted in a seventh-place finish in NL Cy Young Award voting and a runner-up spot in the NL Rookie of the Year race. Expected to be the new cornerstone of the Mets’ rotation, Senga has instead been a virtual non-factor in the 2024 campaign, though it is very intriguing to consider what a bullpen version of Senga could bring to New York in its playoff chase and perhaps in October. If nothing else, getting back to action would provide some comfort for Senga heading into 2025.