Less than two weeks after he suffered a strained hamstring that put his season in jeopardy, Brandon Nimmo returned to the Mets on Friday night.
The center fielder was activated off the injured list and rejoined to a lineup that sorely needed him for their playoff push, though his presence alone wasn’t enough on this night, as the Mets fell to the Phillies, 4-3, at Citi Field.
Nimmo went 1-for-5 with a run scored, flying out to the warning track in center field to end the game.
“It’s not something you necessarily hop right back into and everything’s fine,” Nimmo said. “I am a little bit sore after, just muscle sore. I’ll expect to be a little bit sore tomorrow as well. But everything considered, pretty good for the time I missed and how quickly I came back. So I’m happy about that.”
It remains to be seen whether Nimmo will play every day or if the Mets will handle him cautiously, but with 14 games left after Friday’s loss, they could use him as much as possible.
“We have a few days off ahead of us so that might help cushion some of his playing time and all of that as we’re nearing the end of the season, and obviously we need his presence in the lineup to score some runs,” manager Luis Rojas said. “We gotta win all these games.”
Noah Syndergaard (Tommy John surgery) is set to face batters again this weekend for the second time since having his rehab assignment cut short by COVID-19. The Mets were still debating whether it would be another live batting practice session, as he threw on Wednesday, or if the right-hander would go out on a rehab assignment.
Syndergaard is expected to join the Mets’ bullpen whenever he is cleared to return.
Jacob deGrom, meanwhile, had a “light catch day” Friday, according to Rojas, as he works towards potentially pitching again this season. He has not pitched since July 7 because of a UCL sprain.
The right-hander threw a light bullpen session Tuesday and is expected to throw another “in the next couple days.”
“First side, [he felt] really good after it,” Rojas said.
The Mets optioned reliever Jake Reed to Triple-A Syracuse to make room for Nimmo on the 28-man roster.
They also reinstated RHP Jordan Yamamoto (shoulder soreness) from the 60-day IL and optioned him to Syracuse. To make room on the 40-man roster, the Mets called up LHP Thomas Szapucki from Syracuse and put him on the 60-day IL with ulnar nerve transposition surgery.