Tebow out for
Prayers up for Tim Tebow. The 6-foot-3, 233pounder will miss the remainder of the season with Triple-A Syracuse after sustaining a deep cut on his pinky, according to multiple reports. Tebow again will not be called up for his potential Major League debut in 2019. He is expected to return to the minors in 2020.
Tebow sustained the injury in July while fielding a ball in the outfield. He has since required stitches on his left hand to to help him recover.
The NFL quarterbackturned-professional baseball player is still looking for the opportunity to be called up for the Mets. But this is the second time Tebow sustained an injury late in the minor-league season. Last year, Tebow was shut down in late July after he sustained a
broken bone in his hand. Otherwise, Tebow’s year with Double-A Binghamton was an All-Star season in 2018.
Instead of picking up where he left off, Tebow’s push for the big leagues was not exactly convincing this year. Tebow finished 2019 slashing an abysmal .163/.240/.255 with four homers, 19 RBI and 98 strikeouts in 77 games.
Tebow turns 32 years old on Wednesday and the probability of him getting called up to the Majors is, at this point, more of a distant dream rather than a realistic hope. His chances of getting promoted, especially this season, took a hit when the Mets went on a 14-1 run to play meaningful games in August. When every game matters for a big-league ball club, Tebow is not exactly the first name that comes to mind.
He was selected by the Broncos in the first round of the 2010 NFL draft. Tebow went on to play for the Jets, Patriots and Eagles before walking away from football.
Tebow memorably invited all 30 Major League Baseball teams to an open tryout three years ago. He signed a minorleague contract with the Mets in September of 2016. He famously hit a first-pitch home run in his first at-bat with the organization.
SECOND-HALF TEAM
The Mets’ .777 (21-6) second-half winning percentage is the best in the Major Leagues. The pitching staff has a 2.89 ERA since the AllStar break, ranked the lowest mark in the Majors. The Mets are the only team to own an ERA under 3.00 after the break.
The Mets pitching staff has surrendered 25 homers in the second half, which is the second-fewest in the Majors in that stretch. New York’s four second-half shutouts are tied for the most in the Majors with the Nationals. Offensively, the Mets have hit 50 homers since the break, the most among National League clubs.
ROOKIE MASHER
Pete Alonso skied his 38th home run of the year, a tworun shot to left field, in the fourth inning of the Mets’ walk-off win against the Nationals on Friday. That marked the first time in his young career Alonso homered in four consecutive games.
He is the first Met to homer in four straight since Curtis Granderson did so from Sept. 4-9, 2016. He became the second rookie in franchise history to homer in four straight games, joining Larry Elliot, who did it from July 21-24, 1964. Richard Hidalgo is the only Met to ever home run in five consecutive games during a stretch from July 1-5, 2004.