New York Mets center fielder Harrison Bader injured his neck and upper back, crashing into a wall while trying to make a catch Tuesday night at the Washington Nationals.
Manager Carlos Mendoza called Bader daily after pulling him from the game in the fourth inning. Brandon Nimmo relieved Bader and drove in two runs as part of New York’s 7-2 victory in 10 innings. Nimmo was watching his first game since cutting his forehead when he passed out and fell in his hotel room on Sunday night.
Mendoza said he felt quite comfortable putting Nimmo on.
“After going through his pregame routine, he came into the office and said, ‘I’m ready to go,’” Mendoza recalled. “And then after he saw Bader play, he came in and started moving, so he was ready to go and obviously we saw it.”
Bader recovered a ball hit by Jacob Young late in the third and collided left arm first with the video screen in right-center field. He was slow to get up, but remained in the game until Mendoza decided to eliminate him.
The Mets were without designated hitter J.D. Martinez because of a sore left ankle.
“He said he felt something last night, he didn’t think much about it and today, the same thing,” Mendoza said. “And then when he went to hit the cages, he didn’t feel good. I hope it’s just a day or two. We’ll see what we have tomorrow, but that’s all.”
Bader, 30, is hitting .273 with six home runs and 31 RBIs in his first season with the Mets after signing a one-year, $10.5 million contract in January. He split last season between the New York Yankees and Cincinnati Reds and has played several seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals.
