JED SURGERY?

Lowrie’s knee still isn’t right and he might end up under the knife

Mets fans are never short of opportunities to brush up on their medical knowledge. Jed Lowrie, after an initial visit with Dr. David Altchek provided no official diagnosis, received a second opinion Wednesday that finally led to some answers on his pesky knee injury.

The veteran infielder was diagnosed with PCL laxity which, to GM Brodie Van Wagenen's understanding, is a looseness of the PCL ligament in Lowrie's left knee that is ultimately causing him pain. When Lowrie wears his larger brace, that pain is mitigated and when he takes that brace off or plays in the smaller brace, that pain increases, according to Van Wage- nen.

Lowrie has not spoken to reporters since landing on the 10-day injured list on July 20.

The Mets are not yet certain if Lowrie will need surgery for the injury. Curiously, the team has not placed Lowrie on the 45-day injured list, which would clear a roster spot for another player. This is partly because Van Wagenen expects Lowrie to continue building strength around his knee and contribute to the team at some point this season, though the GM did not provide a timeline on the infielder's potential participation.

“We think the player can help us,” Van Wagenen said. “We saw it in summer camp that offensively he can be a value add to the team. The goal would be to get him back to contribute, but the conversations that come from the doctors here over the course of the next couple of days will determine what the timeline is based on the course of action.”

Lowrie was signed to a two-year, $20 million deal with the Mets before the 2019 season. He missed the entire year until September, when he went 0-for-8 across nine plate appearances and none in the field. The 36year-old practiced with the Mets during both camps, with minimal improvement in the second one earlier this month. He was able to take at-bats and play in the infield, but his slow baserunning speed — while wearing the brace — was not competitive enough for the Mets.

When asked if Lowrie's PCL laxity is something the Mets should have learned