NEW YORK (AP) — Mets infielder Bo Bichette has been kept out of the starting lineup for two days in a row due to soreness in his legs and right ankle, with the possibility that he may not return to action until after the All-Star break.
“It’s a day to day thing,” manager Andy Green said ahead of the club’s continuation of a three-game series against Boston. “If he’s feeling great tomorrow we’ll get him back out there. If not we’ll likely use the All-Star break to kind of get him a full reset.”
Green explained that the trouble started during last weekend’s series in Atlanta, where Bichette went 8 for 18 at the plate but repeatedly fouled balls off his legs throughout the series.
“In Atlanta, he fouled some balls off of his legs, kind of beat his legs up a little bit, played through a lot; the guy’s a warrior,” Green said. “Legs are just overall sore, got some right ankle soreness, as well, coupled with that.”
Before being held out, Bichette went 0 for 3 in Thursday’s 7-3 victory over Kansas City. Over his last 25 games, he has been batting .320 with two home runs and 11 RBIs.
On the season as a whole, Bichette is hitting .256 with 10 home runs and 51 RBIs in his first year with New York after spending seven seasons with the Blue Jays. He had a rough start to the year, going 2-for-22 out of the gate and sitting at just .219 through the first two months of play.
The Mets brought Bichette aboard with a three-year, $126 million contract signed in mid-January to fill the third base role. He ended up making most of his 44 starts at shortstop while Francisco Lindor was sidelined recovering from a calf strain. Bichette has the option to opt out of the contract after either the first or second season and enter free agency.
In other injury news, second baseman Marcus Semien did some running on Saturday after taking part in live batting practice against Clay Holmes on Friday. He could be starting a rehab assignment in the near future as he continues recovering from a left hip flexor strain.
However, Semien’s rehab assignment may be delayed until late next week, since both the Mets’ Triple-A and Double-A affiliates will be off during the All-Star break.
“Obviously, it’s tough timing with the All-Star break,” Green said. “Only games going on are in the FCL through the All-Star break and I’ve seen too many of those games in the last few years to feel great about putting our hitters in the batter’s box.”
Semien was placed on the 10-day injured list on June 25 and has now missed 16 games. He came to the Mets from Texas in exchange for Brandon Nimmo in November and is currently batting .214 with nine home runs and 29 RBIs across 80 games this season.
