Brandon Nimmo being checked out by team trainers after suffering an intercostal injury on Saturday, May 11 vs. Atlanta (Lloyd Mitchell/AMNY)
It looked as though the only thing that could have slowed Brandon Nimmo down was an injury, and that is exactly what appeared to have happened.
The New York Mets’ veteran left fielder left Saturday’s 4-1 loss to the Atlanta Braves after tweaking his right side while trying to hold up a check swing during the third inning. He stayed in the game, working out a walk, but officially departed in the fifth inning when Tyrone Taylor took over for him in left field.
“I was trying to do as much as I could to just get past it and move on in the at-bat, but it felt good for the most part,” Nimmo told reporters after the game (h/t SNY). “It was just more so knowing that it was a cold day and in one half-inning of being out in the outfield it had started to tighten up a little bit and not wanting to exert it more in the cage but also needing to keep it warm for the next at-bat, and so that’s kind of where we came to the decision of let’s play it more safe.
“But yes I did take two more swings and was able to finish the at-bat and that gives me a lot of confidence moving forward.”
The team labeled it as intercostal irritation and manager Carlos Mendoza initially projected this as a “day-to-day” issue. Nimmo also transmitted confidence that this would not land him on the injured list.
“I don’t think it’s IL,” Nimmo said. “I’m hopeful that [Sunady] I will be good to go. I have 24 hours to recover which is a lot in baseball and I am hopeful for tomorrow. If it’s not I don’t expect it to be much longer than that.”
It is understandable for the Mets to practice an abundance of caution. Intercostal injuries, which occur between the ribs, are tricky to navigate and if aggravated, could land Nimmo on the shelf for an extended period of time — as long as two months.
“My worry was just knowing where it was at, that if I had to check up and if I did more then we’re talking something more like six to eight weeks rather than one or two days,” Nimmo said. “…If it does get worse then we’re talking something much more serious so we decided to play on the safer side.”
After a slow start to the 2024 season, Nimmo was coming around over the last two weeks. Across his previous 11 games, he was slashing .297/.422/622 (1.044 OPS) with three home runs, eight RBI, and six walks.
For more on Brandon Nimmo and the Mets, visit AMNY.com
Joe Pantorno
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