And the Mets added to their injury woes when Asdrubal Cabrera was forced to exit in the first inning because of a strained patella tendon suffered while scoring from first on Walker’s triple.
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But following a pair of walks, the Mets finally got the big hit they have been craving when Walker ripped a three-run homer off ex-Yankee Boone Logan to spark a 6-4 win. Mets hitting coach Kevin Long (57) follows the group into the dugout.
According to Rubin, Sunday’s injury came as the 30-year-old was crossing home plate on a triple by Neil Walker. Cabrera had to be helped off the field and could not place any weight on his left leg after scoring the game’s first run in the bottom of the first inning.
Perhaps a slick spot played a role.
Fortunately for Cabrera and the Mets, there was no play at the plate after Walker’s drive caromed off the base of the outfield fence and far from right fielder Carlos Gonzalez. Rain has delayed the start of final game of the two teams’ four-game series. It’s also worth mentioning that left fielder Yoenis Cespedes – who is out of the lineup on Sunday versus the Rockies – is now enduring a setback due to a quadricep injury; centerfielder Juan Lagares recently landed on the 15-day retroactive to July 29 with a thumb injury, leaving the lineup card in flux for Collins.
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Cespedes has been playing through a strained right quadriceps and left Saturday night’s rainy game after five innings when the nagging injury tightened up. Kelly Johnson reached on a fielder’s choice, James Loney worked a walk after a tense 10-pitch at-bat, and Walker stepped to the plate looking for his third hit of the game. He is batting.255 with 13 homers and 33 RBIs in a team-high 100 games. Third baseman Jose Reyes, who joined the Mets July 5, went on the disabled list Saturday with a left oblique strain. Whereas Reyes would’ve been the natural replacement for Cabrera, manager Terry Collins will likely look to Flores. Third baseman David Wright (neck surgery) and pitcher Matt Harvey (thoracic outlet syndrome surgery) are out for the year while first baseman Lucas Duda has been out since May 21 with a stress fracture in his lower back and center fielder Juan Lagares will need surgery after going on the disabled list with torn ligaments in his left thumb on Friday.
