After a fractured wrist in early September ended his regular season, Jeff McNeil still has a chance at returning to the Mets during the postseason.
The second baseman resumed baseball activities on Sunday and is currently on the team’s taxi squad for their best-of-five-NLDS series with the Philadelphia Phillies, putting him on a short list of players that could join the roster should there be any injuries.
McNeil’s return to the field (roughly four weeks since getting injured) is a good sign and on the quicker end of his recovery timeline which was said to be four-to-six weeks.
“I feel good,” McNeil said, speaking to a group of reporters from the visitor’s dugout at Citizens Bank Park. “Got cleared to do some baseball activities and the wrist is feeling pretty good.
“I don’t have any pain [in my wrist] right now, it’s more just getting the range of motion back and that’s all feeling really good. We’re at the point where I’ve been doing baseball activities, been swinging the bat the last week or so, been taking ground balls, running. It’s just getting back into that baseball shape and kinda taking it day-by-day.”
Barring any injuries, McNeil would not be eligible to rejoin New York until the NLCS which, of course, the Mets would need to reach first. Entering Sunday’s action, they were up 1-0 on the Phillies after a 6-2 win in Game 1 on Saturday afternoon.
If McNeil does return, it’ll be interesting to see how Carlos Mendoza deploys the 32-year-old. Prior to getting injured, McNeil was the starting second baseman with Jose Iglesias coming off the bench.
McNeil can also play the corner outfield positions, so his versatility could certainly come in handy down the stretch in the postseason run.
“I’m hoping for anything,” he said. “[The wrist is] feeling good. I’m gonna go off of the advice of the training staff and what this team needs so I want to be ready to play and I know there’s a few more steps that I need to take care of in order to be ready so we’ll work on that and like I said, it’s gonna be a day-to-day thing and when my time is called, I’ll be ready.”
What exactly those steps are, McNeil said it mainly involves seeing live pitching and getting into baseball shape, something he did his best to remain in while away from the team.
McNeil also understands that this late into the season, it’s difficult to get all the things one needs to get ready and comfortable, although he said for him that shouldn’t be a problem.
“I am one of those hitters where I feel like I don’t need a lot,” he said. “At least timing wise, I always feel pretty comfortable and early in spring training as well. It’s tough this time of year to get everything you need, but it’s the playoffs and I just want to be ready to go.”
While away from the team, McNeil has followed along and has watched the Mets’ incredible run recently — one that includes a wild postseason berth on the final day of the regular season and multiple come-from-behind wins.
However, his focus has been split between the Mets and his wife and new daughter who was born on the same day Pete Alonso hit his go-ahead, game-winning three-run homer in the top of the ninth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 3 of the Wild Card Series.
“It was an experience, it was wild. Watching that Atlanta game I was going nuts in my house and it was pretty cool. Wish I could’ve been with the team to celebrate, that’s one thing that I missed but I had some important things to address.
“The last series in Milwaukee, too, I remember I was sitting in the hospital bed with my wife and Pete comes up in that situation and I go ‘Maybe a home run right here’ and I knew I was gonna go crazy and [my wife] goes ‘Don’t go crazy’. When he hit the homer I tried to contain myself, it was a pretty special moment and I was super happy for Pete.”
Asked if he’s had any FOMO (fear of missing out) with how well the team has played lately, McNeil said “a little bit.”
“I want to be with the guys and this is a great group of guys,” he said. “They’re playing well and it’s a special team so I’m just super happy to be back and get to experience all this.”
