WASHINGTON — Travis d’Arnaud’s grip on the Mets’ starting catching job could be slipping.
Normally, manager Terry Collins would have inserted d’Arnaud behind the plate Wednesday — a day game following a night game, after Rene Rivera started Tuesday — but the manager went a different direction: Rivera returned to the lineup, with d’Arnaud on the bench.
Rivera finished 0-for-2 with a walk in the Mets’ 1-0 loss to the Nationals.
“You play the hot hand,” Collins said, noting Rivera’s superior numbers against Tanner Roark. “We’re in a situation now where we’ve got to go with, at this time last year or maybe a little earlier, hey look: The guys that are producing runs are the guys who are going to get in there. That’s how we’re going to win.”
D’Arnaud, who finished 4-for-17 (.235) on the road trip, said he understood the decision.
“I just have to keep working and play all the way until the end and strive for that ultimate goal to get to the playoffs,” d’Arnaud said. “The more important thing for me is we’re winning and in the playoff hunt.”
Collins called it “frustrating” that d’Arnaud has just four homers in 229 at-bats this season.
“I try to sit with the hitting guys and talk about it, but we don’t have any real answers,” Collins said. “They’ve tried to look at the swing pretty intently and there’s not a lot of differences in the swing path from last year to this year. He’s just not driving the ball.”
Wilmer Flores is expected to have his right wrist examined Thursday in New York.
The infielder missed a fourth straight game, following his Saturday collision at the plate with A.J. Pierzynski. Flores’ neck was initially the issue, but after Wednesday’s game he revealed the wrist soreness has precluded him from swinging the bat.
Flores said a previous X-ray of the wrist was negative.
Collins said he is leaning heavily toward keeping Noah Syndergaard in turn and pitching the righty on Monday with an extra day of rest. That increases the likelihood the Mets might start either Jacob deGrom or Steven Matz to pitch Sunday against the Twins and use them in a “piggyback,” throwing three or four innings each.
Matz threw a 20-pitch bullpen session on Wednesday in Port St. Lucie and deGrom played catch before the game.