Slumping Mets will be “good”

PHILADELPHIA – Francisco Lindor regrets not being able to be on the pitch with his Mets teammates to help them weather this latest storm.

The shortstop, who is recovering from right oblique tension, had seen his team drop to 9-13 since his injury and take second place in the NL East, half a game behind the Phillies, so that the game started on Saturday. Experience tells him not to worry.

“They’ll be fine,” Lindor said after a pre-game training session at Citizens Bank Park. “The team will be fine. It sucks. I want to be there and I want to help them. I want to do whatever it takes. I want to work with them on a daily basis.

“They work extremely hard, they play hard – I feel like they’re giving it their all. We are not getting the results we want. I would like to be with them. I would like to fight with them. But this situation I’m in, God put me in this situation right now, so I have to face it. I try to support them and let them know that I am there, as much as I can be.

Lindor suffered a grade 2 oblique strain during a swing in Pittsburgh on July 16. He started taking swings off a tee and fielding Grounders, but said he didn’t have a timeline for his potential return to the roster. Acting chief executive Zack Scott had previously suggested Lindor’s absence would not extend beyond five weeks, putting a potential August comeback on the line.

Lindor said he prefers to be “quiet” about his progress.

“Let’s put it this way: if I come back soon, I will be back soon,” he said. “I don’t know when I’ll be back. I don’t have a week, I don’t have a schedule. I would love to sit here and say, “I’ll be back home. Or I would like to say, “I’m going to play rehab next week.” I do not know. Honestly, I do not know.

With Lindor on the injured list, the Mets acquired Javier Baez from the Cubs on the trade deadline. Baez has settled in at the shortstop and will move on to another position in the infield once Lindor returns. Baez helped the Mets win a game Wednesday in Miami with a home run in the eighth inning.

“I love Javy,” Lindor said. “He’s my brother. I know he wants to win. That’s all he wants to do, so I’m very excited for the day when I come back and shoot a lot of double plays with him. impatience.

Lindor remains a clubhouse vocal leader even with his absence from the lineup. He said he brought a positive message every day, regardless of the results.

“Keep fighting – that’s what I keep saying,” Lindor said. “Keep fighting and enjoy the ride. Enjoy life. As long as we are healthy, we have a great opportunity to do something special.

“I know the boys will be fine. I know a lot of people are pushing, questioning what’s going on. It’s that time of year. It happens to all teams. Each team is going through this stretch and we are going through it right now. We will get out of this. This is how baseball works.