J.D. sits after glove woes; Pete will defend title
CHICAGO — A day after Luis Rojas doubled down on his confidence in J.D. Davis being the Mets’ everyday third baseman, the error-prone infielder was not in the Mets’ lineup for their series finale against the Cubs.
Davis committed three errors (two throwing, one fielding) in two games at Wrigley Field this week. Following Davis’ latest struggles at the hot corner on Wednesday, Rojas indicated he didn’t see the need to give his infielder a night off. The manager further defended
Davis and said, “I don’t see why right now we would have any doubt that he can go out there and play good defense for us.”
Even on Thursday, after the Mets made the decision to sit Davis, Rojas hedged and said Davis wasn’t in the lineup because he wanted Luis Guillorme to get a start at third base.
“J.D.’s going to play this weekend at third base for us,” Rojas said, indicating he wanted Davis, who’s played just six games, to rest before the Mets’ three-game series against the Nationals at Citi Field. “We’re going to arrive in New York potentially really late, or early, however you want to call it. We’re looking at him to get that rest and be in the lineup tomorrow.”
Davis was replaced by Guillorme on Thursday, batting leadoff, and the defensive wiz made his presence known on his first opportunity. Guillorme dove for an Ian Happ ground ball in the dirt, spun around and fired a throw to first base on his knees for the first out of the game behind Joey Lucchesi.
With Guillorme starting, the defensive upgrade at the hot corner was tenfold, but the Mets had to trade in Davis’ bat (.412 batting average, 1.147 OPS in six games) to get it.
DEFENDING THE TITLE
Pete Alonso is already thinking about smashing home run after home run in the hitter-friendly confines of Coors Field this summer. In what he agreed was “an easy decision,” Alonso said he would enjoy participating in this year’s Home Run Derby, set to take place in Denver instead of Atlanta in July.
“Oh, I’m all in. I’m ready,” Alonso said. “If I get invited, I’d love to do it. I’d love to defend my title.”
Alonso raised the Derby trophy after smashing 57 home runs in 2019, which was the last time the All-Star Game took place after 2020 s festivities were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Alonso outslugged Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the final round and his 57 homers were third-most in Derby history. He became the second rookie ever to win the event, with Aaron Judge being the first in 2017.
NIMMO STILL STIFF
The Mets’ best hitter was forced to miss at least two games due to his hip stiffness. Brandon Nimmo was not in Thursday’s lineup against the Cubs for the second consecutive day after flagging the team for his hip discomfort. The outfielder was available off the bench, Rojas said.
Nimmo leads the team in OBP (.490), slugging percentage (.495), OPS (.955) and average (.395). The Mets hope the couple of days off from playing while he received treatment on his hip will make him ready for this weekend’s slate of games at Citi Field.