Mets second baseman Jeff McNeil was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left elbow sprain earlier today, with infielder Danny Mendick replacing the 31-year-old on the active roster. McNeil subsequently revealed to reporters (including Tim Healey of Newsday) that the injury is actually a partially torn UCL. While UCL damage is always an ominous sign, both McNeil and manager Buck Showalter downplayed the seriousness of the issue. Per McNeil, the plan is for the veteran infielder to receive a platelet-rich plasma injection into his elbow to help address the tear. Surgery is not currently being considered, and Showalter told reporters today that he expects McNeil will be good to go for Spring Training next season.
With just four games remaining in the 2023 regular season and the Mets not in the postseason picture, McNeil’s placement on the IL brought an end to his 2023 campaign even before the severity of the issue came to light. As was the case for many Mets players this year, the 2023 campaign was a down year for McNeil. On the heels of a resurgent 2022 season where he lead the majors with a .326 batting average and posted a 141 wRC+ in 589 trips to the plate, McNeil slashed a relatively lackluster .270/.333/.378, exactly league average by measure of wRC+.
That league average slash line belies McNeil’s overall value as a versatile, everyday left-handed bat capable of playing all over the diamond, and McNeil figures to be an asset to the Mets next season even if his offense doesn’t rebound to its previous levels. Of course, the club was surely hoping for above average offensive production when they inked McNeil to a four-year, $50MM extension this past offseason. At least three years and $43.75MM remain on the contract, which bought out two of McNeil’s free agent years and added a $15.75MM club option for a third.
Looking ahead to 2024, McNeil should once again figure prominently in the Mets’ plans if he is able to return in time for Spring Training as expected. The club could offer extended looks to youngsters like Brett Baty, Ronny Mauricio, and Mark Vientos around the infield next year, given the club’s expectation of taking a step back in 2024 and primarily focusing on competing in 2025 and beyond. That being said, McNeil’s versatility should allow him to garner everyday at-bats between second base, third base, and the outfield corners even if the focus winds up being on developing young players next season.
As for Mendick, the 29-year-old utility player has received just 66 plate appearances in the big leagues this year, slashing a brutal .190/.227/.286 during that limited playing time. That being said, Mendick is just one year removed from a much stronger season with the White Sox during which he posted a solid .289/.343/.443 slash line across 106 trips to the plate. He figures to provide multi-positional depth off the bench for New York in the final games of the 2023 campaign.
He’ll go on a stem cell treatment program
Its actually platelet-rich plasma treatment.
He slipped on the wet outfield grass making a nice running catch,which caused him to fall and roll over. Bad way to end his season
I was just going to ask how the injury happened. Ty.
“McNeil’s injury stems from a Sept. 11 game against the D-backs, when Tommy Pham threw him out trying to stretch a single into a double. As McNeil slid into second base, he collided with shortstop Jordan Lawlar, which resulted in his arm bending backward.“
-MLB.com
And yet, he’s been playing for the last 2 1/2 weeks
“McNeil’s injury stems from a Sept. 11 game against the D-backs, when Tommy Pham threw him to ground after a heated dispute over a meme McNeil posted about Pham’s fantasy football team. As McNeil hit the ground, his arm bent backward.”
-MLB.com
Kiss the postseason goodbye.
They punted on that two months ago.
Partially torn UCL in his left elbow sounds like it really shouldn’t be a big deal considering he throws with his right arm.
Yeah and depends on the grade of the tear. Partial could mean a small tear of half the ligament is torn. Being that he and Buck downplayed it, it’s likely the former.
Good high budget team contract on him. Last year guaranteed year is 2026 for his age 34 season at 16m. Hopefully gets to see Cohen ‘go for it’ a couple more times.
Well, breaktime at the game with the rain delay in the 9th.
One thing I noticed that is nice. It’s good to hear all the Marlins fans in CitiField. Feels like a home game for the Marlins. Too bad about so many empty seats in CitiField. The Marlins need to draw more fans there.
You can hear Marlins fans, so how does it feel like a home game? 29th home average attendance in MLB, yet 14th highest in road average attendance…or 2x the home average crowd. Marlins are a roadshow.
@RunDMC
First, you clearly don’t get the humor in my comment/jab.
I’m fine with the roadshow aspects.
And it feels like a home game because it’s clearly a Marlins fans takeover in NY. Again, you’re clearly missing the humor in this statement and observation by me.
………For one night (in the rain) in a game of no significance for the Mets
Dude you can’t say anything to this guy. He is a troll. That’s why he posting about a pro-Marlin crowd in a post about Jeff McNeil. His point is that he’s always right and the Marlins are the best run,most interesting team that everyone is dying to watch. Oh yeah they don’t draw flies and they are in the middle of a playoff run. And how about that traveling Marlin contingent that follows them on road games? Oh yeah that doesn’t exist either. No use at all man and don’t bother with your silly facts!!!
@Chris…… Don’t worry….. I know who and what he is. Doesn’t bother me at all.
You guys all fail to see the point. When you Mets fans are doing well and come to Miami, all you Mets fans squawk on every Marlins post and make a big deal about how loud Mets fans are in Miami and always say that Miami is a home game for the Mets. And you do this with a lot of fan bases in their parks.
Now you all are bothered by the reversal?
Can we say you all can dish it but you can’t take it? Yes we can because you all are bothered by me calling it out and looking at the humor in it.
If you all don’t like people poking fun at it when you get the reversal, then don’t do it to other teams and their fan bases.
Personally, I think it’s all funny on so many levels.
BTW, too bad your groundscrew couldn’t get the job done in the Marlins stadium this series. Now we have to come back to our stadium on Monday…if that game means anything.
Can’t you just enjoy the Marlins having a shot this year? First of all you are talking about 3 rows of Marlins fans who came to a meaningless,rainy,end of September game and made a bit of noise. Finally actual Marlin fans!!! I’m glad there is photographic evidence that they exist!!! Why aren’t there Marlin’s fan’s attending games in Miami? Games in Miami are home games for the NY area teams. Until that changes you don’t really have a point. Hey be happy the Marlins finally drew a million people this year and 35% of those fans came to see the Mets and Yankees. Hope you get some playoff tickets. I’m sure plenty of good seats are available!!!!
With all the young infield talent in the organization, it wouldn’t surprise me if Stearns tries to trade him for pitching or another prospect this offseason.
Depending on asking price, I’d be all for the Marlins grabbing him up. McNeil and Arraez together would be nice – either Arraez to 1B or my preference of McNeil to DH.
McNeil and cash to cover part of his contract for Braxton Garrett.
Who says no?
Its good to see a fairly realistic trade proposal! But i think with alcantara’s injury concern and not pushing eury’s workload, plus rogers and sixto questionable future a availability, their sp isnt as deep as it was. Not sure they would part w garrett. McNeil did have a down year, but it seemed like he always did something in a game, at least second half. And overall, hes a very good hitter with lots of position versatility.
@ Blue Baron I think that’s jumping the gun a bit. I fully expect McNeil to be traded before this contract runs out. But not just yet.
Cohen’s stated objective was to be “competitive” next year (whatever that means) and return to contention by ’25 or ’26. And I’m not sure the the young infield talent is that close. (Most prospects – especially in this org – are farther away than the press makes it sound).
As for the Binghamton trio of infielders:
Jackson’s slightly concerning 27% strike-out rate in the Southern League ballooned to 34% with Binghamton.
Acuna only went .249/.317/.304 in Binghamton.
Jett Williams has only had six games there, so I won’t read anything into his performance at that level. But I also won’t totally overlook that he struck out 10 times in 26 PAs. His rise has been so meteoric that its more than likely to slow down somewhere, at least for a little while.
There’s a lot of pitching of all tiers on the free agent market this year. That seems to be the most expedient way to address the Mets’ pitching shortage in the short term. It also buys them more time to get a clearer view and timeline on how far the prospects – both infield and pitching – are.
Mauricio looks ready and reminds me of Jose Reyes, and Baty and Vientos have looked better in recent weeks.
But you probably are correct.
@geofft
I think youre right on acuna not being as close as some are saying. Same for Jett, but i think his upside is extremely high. He jumped two levels and got better w each move. His plate discipline is outstanding, and w his speed, thats a combo the mets sorely need
At least McNeill was not hit by a pitch in his private regions, or headline would have read “Squirrel has nuts toasted”.
@MannyBeingMVP
One of the best comments on this site ever!
BTW, one thing for sure, since McNeil is done for the year, we can also add another headline of “Squirrel has nuts stored for the winter”.
He should have gotten injured earlier so he could have at least enjoyed his off-season.
What an amazingly dumb comment.
Why don’t you go get injured and see if you enjoy it, Einstein?
It would be absurd for the Mets not to seek to contend in 2024 in the era of three wildcard teams, just as it would be absurd for them to think Baty and Vientos will be starting-caliber contributors even at DH.
It’s popular to carry on about prospects ‘needing time’ and then give all the wrong examples such as guys like Austin Riley, who in fact had a heckuva promising first season. Guys who succeed the year following awkward rookie seasons almost invariably showed strong promise in a couple of important areas during said rookie season. Baty and Vientos have shown strong promise and extended growth in exactly zero areas. They’re what we call ‘5 tool tools.’ Can’t run, field, throw, hit, or hit for power.
You can point to Vientos’ combined good week at the end of August and beginning of September and try to make something of it, but that’s farcical.
One option is to treat them as a platoon DH in 2024 and hope something comes of it. Another is to decide that the value you can get in trade from a second division team hoping to get two starters out of the deal, is likely significantly higher than what you’ll get hoping that together they’ll combine to become one competent DH.
It’s the organization, really. How do you have two very defensively=challenged prospects who can mash in the minors, and move them around the diamond in the minors, especially at positions they’ve demonstrated they cannot play as if to ensure they simply won’t succeed as position players? If either or both had been put in LF for three seasons one or even both might have turned into an adequate corner OFer, but since these are the Mets, well, they managed to turn one of 2023’s better fielding 3Bmen in JD Davis (91st percentile when I looked two weeks ago) into one of MLB’s worst, between 2019 and 2022.
This is a team almost dead even in RS and RA despite all the trades at the Deadline. That’s a team that can readily be turned into a wildcard contender for 2024 without jeopardizing or sacrificing future seasons. Get it done, David.