Brandon Nimmo removed from Mets' Saturday game due to right intercostal irritation
NEW YORK — Brandon Nimmo felt like he stretched a little bit too far.
As Nimmo checked his swing on a low curveball from the Braves' Max Fried during his second plate appearance in the bottom of the third inning on Saturday, the Mets leadoff hitter called timeout and grabbed his right side.
After a brief visit from Carlos Mendoza and the training staff, Nimmo stepped back in, took two big hacks and then drew a walk. But after running out into the outfield, Nimmo said his side felt a little tight.
Nimmo was removed prior to the fifth inning after spending an inning in the field. The Mets announced that he was dealing with right intercostal irritation.
"We probably could have continued but my worry was just knowing where it was at that if I had to check up and I had to do more, then we’re talking something more like six to eight weeks rather than one or two days," Nimmo said.
The intercostal is the muscle located within the rib cage. Nimmo was replaced in the game by Tyrone Taylor. The Mets do not believe the injury to be serious, and Nimmo will not undergo an MRI.
"I thought we caught it early, hopefully," Mendoza said. "I was just talking to the trainers, they don’t think anything is too serious, but we got to see how he wakes up tomorrow and go from there. As of right now, it’s day-to-day."
Nimmo has been one of the hottest hitters in the Mets' lineup since the calendar turned to May. The Mets outfielder entered Friday's game on a seven-game hitting streak, going 9-for-28 (.321) with two home runs, seven RBI and five runs during that stretch.
That streak was snapped due to his early departure after Nimmo flied out to left field and drew a walk in his two plate appearances.
Nimmo said he leaned on previous situations where he has tried to push through an injury to pull back the reins and make the call to leave the game.
"Don’t get me wrong, every game is important, but right now, we wanted to be more on the cautious side than pushing this thing," Nimmo said.
This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NY Mets: Brandon Nimmo removed from Saturday's game with injury
