Robinson Cano aggravates quad in first game back from injured list
NEW YORK -- Robinson Cano was removed in the fifth inning of the New York Mets’ 7-0 win over the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday with left quad tightness.
Cano had been on the injured list since May 22 with the same issue but was activated and returned to the starting lineup for Wednesday's game. Mickey Callaway said he was comfortable with the initial evaluation of Cano and was pleased with the way he looked running and fielding.
"I think that he understands his body more than we could evaluate it," Callaway said. "He expressed to us that he was ready to go and so we activated him."
Cano hit weak ground balls to first base in each of his two at-bats Wednesday. The first scored Jeff McNeil in the opening inning, and the next started an inning-ending double play with the bases loaded in the third.
"When I hit that ground ball I just feel like a little tight and I don’t want to push it," Cano said. "I told the trainer there was a little tightness."
The Mets took a 5-0 lead in the fourth on homers from Michael Conforto and Amed Rosario, and Cano was replaced defensively by Adeiny Hechavarria the next inning.
Cano had two hits in 18 at-bats (.111) before going down with the injury during the last homestand. He's batting .238 with three homers and 13 RBIs this season.
Hechavarria, Cano's stand-in at second base, cracked a seventh-inning solo shot of Derek Holland to bring the game to its final score. It was Hechavarria's fourth homer and 13th RBI in 107 fewer plate appearances than Cano this season.
"You don't feel like you’re losing anything when he gets put in the game," Callaway said. "When you have to spell somebody or someone gets injured, you feel totally comfortable with getting him in there and his defense has been great."
Hechavarria is batting .242 in 62 at-bats with the Mets this season. He hit a double play ball in the fifth that was thrown away by Giants pitcher Tyler Beede and eventually led to a run.
