The New York Mets offense has been dealt a blow with All-Star outfielder Yoenis Cespedes suffering a strained quad against the Washington Nationals on July 8. It is unclear when he will be able to return.
Continue for updates.
Cespedes Out vs. Nationals
Saturday, July 9
The Mets announced Cespedes will not play against the Nationals on Saturday.
Cespedes Replaced in All-Star Game
Saturday, July 9
Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Starling Marte and Cincinnati Reds outfielder Jay Bruce have been added to the NL All-Star roster to replace Cespedes and Chicago Cubs outfielder Dexter Fowler, per Carrie Muskat of MLB.com.
Cespedes Has Been Bright Spot in Mets Lineup
The 30-year-old leads the team in home runs, RBI, on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
The Mets haven’t been able to sustain much offensively this year because of slumping players (Michael Conforto, who has been demoted to Triple-A) or injuries (David Wright, Lucas Duda). They rank 28th in Major League Baseball with 331 runs scored entering Friday.
They are in a similar position to the one they faced last year around this time, with a great pitching staff carrying the load, though that group was dealt a blow with Matt Harvey having season-ending surgery, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.
General manager Sandy Alderson was able to work a trade out for Cespedes last July that helped them make a run to a National League East title and appearance in the World Series.
If the Mets are going to put together another second-half run in 2016, Cespedes’ presence is absolutely essential. He is the middle-of-the-order masher they desperately need to withstand all of the other problems in their lineup without falling off the pace in the NL East.
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