Club cautious with Smith in left field

WESTPALMBEACH, FLA. — TheMets have been extra careful with their starting left fielder.

Dominic Smith has yet to play a Grapefruit League game in left field as the Amazin’s approach the halfway point of spring training. Smith figures to play in left most days in the regular season — without the DH in the National League — and he has said more reps will help him improve his fielding in the outfield corner.

So why aren’t the Mets playing him there?

Purely as a preventative measure, Luis Rojas said, the club is taking its time shifting Smith from his natural position at first base to left field to avoid a relapse of his 2019 stress fracture. Smith has DH’edin five exhibition games after arriving a few days late to Mets camp for undisclosed reasons.

“With him, the bouncing from first to left is what, in history, it’s hurt him,” the Mets manager said on Wednesday. “It’s not hurting him now, but wewant to learn that everything is OK before we actually start ramping up the time drastically.”

Smith missed two months of the 2019 season with a stress fracture in his left foot that the team believed was caused by his increased workload at both first base and left field. Smith, who quickly became a fan-favorite, saw T-shirts being produced of his scooter celebrations, whenhe would wheel out onto the field after walk-offs to join in the fun.

Injury update: Carlos Carrasco, who is sidelined from throwing with right elbow soreness, is expected to begin playing catch on Sunday, per Rojas. Carrasco also received his second COVID-19 vaccine on Tuesday and was dealing with body aches, but the skipper said he spoke to him Thursday morning and “he looked a lot better.”

“He said he’s feeling better body-wise and he got his treatment today,” Rojas said. “I don’t think he did any activity outside.”

If Carrasco starts playing catch Sunday it means he will have had five days off from throwing.