Bat hurts! Nimmo hit on finger

PHILADELPHIA — Brandon Nimmo hit a roller to third base in Game 1 of Thursday’s doubleheader, except the pitch never struck the bat.

Instead, Nimmo’s left index finger served as the impetus, and the Mets outfielder crumpled to the ground in agony.

Initial X-rays taken on the finger during the Mets’ 24-4 victory over the Phillies were negative, but Nimmo will be reevaluated Friday with an MRI exam, and he likely will be unavailable to hit for a few days.

“It all hit on my knuckle,” Nimmo said of the two-strike fastball from Ranger Suarez in the third inning. “It hit off the knuckle and went into fair play, that was kind of the insult to injury.”

Nimmo had reached base in 10 consecutive at-bats — the longest streak in Mets history since Benny Agbayani in 2000 — before the groundout. Now Nimmo is hopeful the injury won’t begin another cold streak. He was drilled in the right hand in late June and fell into a slump that he believes was driven by bad habits he developed after getting plunked.

“I guess it’s a good learning experience from last time of what I am kind of looking for as far as feel and strength in my hand,” Nimmo said. “I will try to be a little more diligent on this one about coming back the right way.”

A night earlier, Nimmo had a career-best 5-for-5 performance and came within a homer of hitting for the cycle against the Orioles. He entered Thursday seventh in the National League with a .387 on-base percentage.

“I wish that I had held back and let the ball hit me in the elbow guard or something,” said Nimmo, who has been drilled 18 times this season, the secondhighest total in the major leagues. “I was just trying to let the ball travel a little bit. I realized it was a fastball and it just two-seamed right in the knuckle.”

David Wright continued his rehab assignment for Single-A St. Lucie. Wright went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and is 0-for-10 with five strikeouts in four starts at third base. … Jay Bruce took the day off from his own rehab.