The Mets bats were relatively quiet at the beginning of the 2024 campaign as the blue and orange stumbled out of the gates to a 2-6 start.
Francisco Lindor, Jeff McNeil and Brandon Nimmo are a combined 6-for-78, and the blue and orange do not have a single player with more than eight hits total.
The good news for the Mets is that reinforcements are on their way at some point, but they have been delayed for the time being.
J.D. Martinez is dealing with overall body soreness
On Sunday morning, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza revealed to the media that J.D. Martinez is dealing with overall body soreness.
“He’s feeling it, body-wise,” Mendoza said. “Quick ramp-up, a lot of at-bats on the back fields. But now that he’s started playing in real games where he’s got to go through his routine… it’s going to take him a little bit longer. That’s what we’ve been saying; it was fluid. So we’ll see where he’s at next week.”
The Mets and Martinez came together on a one-year $12 million contract a week before the regular season began, and he has been conditioning in the minor leagues to make up for his lack of spring training.
The 36-year-old is 1-for-8 with a single and a walk-through two minor league appearances for Single-A St. Lucie.
Martinez is coming off a stellar season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, in which he slashed .271/.321/.572 with 33 home runs and 103 RBIs and had a stellar 134 OPS+.
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What does this mean for the Mets?
With Martinez’s set-back, the Mets will be without one of their key cogs in the lineup for their first four matchups with the division favorite Atlanta Braves.
The 36-year-old will now have to wait until Friday to debut in the blue and orange, but there is no guarantee that he will appear then anyway.
The Mets will continue to rotate designated hitters for the time being, and D.J. Stewart may get a couple of more at-bats in the upcoming days.