Mets News: Lucas Duda Placed On 15-Day DL

By Kenneth Teape | May 23, 2016

Apr 25, 2016; New York City, NY, USA; New York Mets first baseman Lucas Duda (21) runs out on his two run home run during the third inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports /

New York Mets news was not good regarding first baseman Lucas Duda, as he will be placed on the 15-day DL with a stress fracture in his back.

New York Mets news started out as positive, as Noah Syndergaard received the National League Player of the Week award. Now, things have taken a negative spin, as it was announced that starting first baseman Lucas Duda will be placed on the 15-day DL.

Over the weekend manager Terry Collins was concerned about the status of Duda, who was struggling with back pain and missed the weekend games against the Milwaukee Brewers. His worst nightmares were realized, as it was announced that Duda has a stress fracture in his back, and he will be out for the foreseeable future. Collins said that it would be a while before he returns.

Duda: stress fracture in his back. No timetable. "It will be a while," Collins says.
— Andrew Beaton (@andrewlbeaton) May 23, 2016

Awhile, according to Collins, is at least 4-6 weeks without doing any baseball activity. With that timetable, it would mean that Duda will more than likely be sidelined through the All-Star break, as he will need some rehab appearances before coming back to the major league team.

To replace Duda on the roster, the Mets have called up Ty Kelly from Triple-A Las Vegas. Kelly has been very productive in AAA this season with a slash line of .391/.478/.548 in 35 games and 115 at-bats. He has two home runs and 15 RBI, and could find himself with some playing time right off the bat.

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Kelly will bring some versatility to the Mets bench, as he has played first base, third base, shortstop and left field this season with the 51’s. He will vie for playing time at first base with Wilmer Flores, who is set to begin his rehab assignment Tuesday and Eric Campbell. To make room for Kelly on the 40-man roster, Dario Alvarez was designated for assignment.

There has been some talk about David Wright shifting over to first base, and he is willing to do it if it means helping the team. But, Collins said that is not in consideration right now.

Another option that has been brought up is moving Michael Conforto from left field as. Collins said that Conforto would begin talking ground balls at first base, but he will be learning it from scratch so there is very little chance we see him there anytime soon.

Michael Conforto will start taking some ground balls at first base, Terry Collins said. null
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinMedia) May 23, 2016

Don't look for Michael Conforto to be at first base anytime soon. He is starting there from scratch. No experience there is college either.
— Adam Rubin (@AdamRubinMedia) May 23, 2016

While Duda hasn’t played great this season, slashing .231/.297/.431 with seven home runs, none since May 4th, and 19 RBI. Despite the lack of stats, this is a big loss for the Mets. They will now be shifting other players around, which could take some people out of their comfort zone.

This also makes the Mets’ lineup more lopsided. The Mets were already in the market for a left-handed hitting infielder, as Duda was the only one that they had. Now with him out of the lineup they have none, as Asdrubal Cabrera, Neil Walker and Kelly are all switch-hitters.

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The Mets will try and patch things together for the time being with what they have, but do not be surprised if they step up their efforts in acquiring a left-handed hitting infielder from outside the organization.

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