Callaway On How The Mets Will Cover For Cano

Robinson Cano. @Mets.

Mets second baseman Robinson Cano left Sunday's game against the Pirates with a leg injury, and was placed on the 10-day injured list on Monday morning.


An MRI taken Monday revealed that he had a torn left hamstring. Surgery is not required, but there is no timetable for his return.

Mets Manager Mickey Callaway said of the diagnosis after Monday's doubleheader sweep of Miami, "That's devastating, you know, you just don't know what's next, so we have to fill in for him. We have to have somebody step up and I feel like they will."

Cano was hitting .252 with 10 home runs and 32 RBI in 86 games this season. He has really turned it on in the second half, with six home runs, including a three-home run game against San Diego on July 23.

On Tuesday afternoon, Callaway revealed what the plan will be for second place going forward, "Right now, with our current roster, you know, I kind of look at (Juan) Lagares, (Aaron) Altherr, I have Hech (Adeiny Hechavarria), and I have (Luis) Guillorme, and I think that one of those guys every day is going to kind of cover for Cano.

"Today, it's Guillorme playing second base and stuck (Jeff) McNeil in the outfield. Tomorrow, it could be McNeil on the infield and Lagares in center, and obviously (Michael) Conforto will be back playing in right, but I think it's going to be a combination of those four guys, and hopefully, we can get one or two of those going, and maybe one or two of them stand out and show us that maybe they deserve more playing time than the other. That's the best solution I can think of at this point, and hopefully, a couple of those guys will getting it done and we won't lose a step."

The thing about this plan is that two of the four are defensive specialists (Hechavarria and Lagares), one is inexperienced (Guillorme), and the fourth guy entered Tuesday tied for the National League Batting title.

For the record, McNeil is hitting .337 with 14 home runs and 50 RBI; Hechavarria is hitting .216 with five home runs and 18 RBI; Lagares is hitting .186 with two home runs and 16 RBI, and Guillorme is hitting .154 with no homers or RBI in 18 games, with a significant number of those appearing as a pinch hitter.

Second base has traditionally been a defensive position, and with the way Pete Alonso, J.D. Davis, Conforto, and McNeil have swung the bat this season, they can sacrifice some offense there if necessary.