Now it’s Juan Lagares’ turn to hurt.
On a day the Mets placed Yoenis Cespedes on the disabled list with a right hip flexor strain, Lagares needed tests on his left big toe after banging into the center-field fence on Wednesday. X-rays were negative, but Lagares — diagnosed with a sprained big toe — did not sound certain he would be ready for Friday’s game against the Diamondbacks.
“I was afraid that something was broken, but we’ll see how I feel [Thursday] and we’ll go from there,” Lagares said after the Mets’ 12-1 loss to the Blue Jays.
Lagares raced to catch Gio Urshela’s drive to deep center in the ninth. He was replaced by a pinch-hitter in the bottom of the inning.
Lagares has been among the team’s better offensive players and figures to receive more opportunities in a crowded outfield now that Cespedes is sidelined.
“First of all I have to see how my toe is,” Lagares said. “But I just want to be ready for the opportunity. Any opportunity that I have I just want to try to do my best out there and help the team win.”
Todd Frazier is eligible to be removed from the disabled list on Friday, but indicated he likely won’t return immediately. The veteran third baseman has been sidelined with a strained left hamstring and indicated he’s been limited in his baseball activity: he took swings against Jason Vargas in a simulated game earlier this week.
AJ Ramos had a brutal performance Wednesday, surrendering three earned runs on four hits and one walk over two-thirds of an inning. The right-hander has allowed runs in three of his last four appearances. Overall he has posted a 5.17 ERA in 23 appearances.
Luis Guillorme singled in his first at-bat to become the first Mets player to begin his major league career 3-for-3 since Steven Matz in 2015. Guillorme was retired in his final two at-bats of the game.
Peter Alonso entered Thursday tied for the Eastern League lead in homers with 11 and third with a .367 batting average. Alonso, a first baseman, had three homers and six RBIs in his previous three games.
The Mets’ loss was their first in 13 meetings all-time at home against the Blue Jays. The longest home winning streak against an opponent in franchise history is 14 straight versus the Pirates from 1986-87.