After being hit by a slider from Tony Gonsolin to open the game the night before at Dodger Stadium, New York Mets’ Francisco Lindor underwent X-rays that revealed a fracture in his pinky toe.
Despite the pain, he showed his commitment and strength and managed to play all nine innings. However, the Puerto Rican shortstop was not in the team’s starting lineup for Thursday’s series finale against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
In his place, Luisangel Acuña has been included. At 23, he comes into the game with a batting average of .246/.298/.292 and 11 stolen bases in 53 games.
Meanwhile, Lindor said that “it hurts, and even more with shoes,” but that he will be evaluated “day by day” and hopes to be able to play “sooner rather than later.” He expressed this in a video shared by SNY’s official X account.
There, fans showed their support for the 31-year-old shortstop: “He’s a tough dude, he’ll be back soon,” commented one user, “Day by day can mean anything. Our captain can have my pinkie toe tho,” said another, “Get well soon Lindor,” wished another follower, “WE LOVE YOU KING GET BETTER,” commented another euphorically.
Despite his injury, Lindor did not rule out the possibility of entering the field as a batter if the team needs him to. “In my opinion, if I’m good enough to bat and run, I should be good enough to play shortstop,” Lindor said. “But in the end, I trust the coaches, and when they think it’s best, I’ll do it.“
The future of the Mets
The Mets lead the National League East Division with a 39-23 record and won two of the first three games of this series against the Dodgers. However, Lindor’s performance will be missed.
The Mets will then travel to Denver to face the Colorado Rockies, and on Tuesday they will begin a home series against the Washington Nationals.
The Puerto Rican shortstop is one of the Mets’ cornerstones, and his numbers prove it. Francisco has a batting average of .279/.353/.490 with 14 home runs, 36 RBIs, 10 doubles, 11 stolen bases, and 42 runs in 61 games.
Although his absence is expected to be temporary, his tolerance for pain and his progress in the coming days will be key to determining when he will be able to return to shine with the team.
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