‘I’ll be ready to go’ when manager chooses
Jeff McNeil’s absence from the starting lineup persisted into Saturday’s London Series opener against the Phillies, marking his fourth consecutive game on the Mets’ bench. Though McNeil is ostensibly still the starting second baseman, he has been excluded from the lineup in five of the team’s last seven games.
“I don’t have a choice,” McNeil said about manager Carlos Mendoza’s decisions. “He makes the lineup, and I respect that, and I’ll be ready to go.”
Despite Mendoza’s assurances that McNeil remains “our second baseman” and dismissals of a platoon arrangement, his actions suggest otherwise since veteran infielder Jose Iglesias joined the roster last week. With the Mets facing five left-handed and two right-handed starters in that period, Iglesias has played against all the lefties, while McNeil has started the other two games.
In effect, it has been a strict platoon, which McNeil acknowledged in his first public comments on the situation.
“I’m not looking too into it,” McNeil said. “We have a right-handed second baseman.”
When reminded that he typically plays against left-handed pitchers, McNeil replied, “We’ve also never had a backup second baseman who’s a right-handed hitter. So yeah, he’ll play against lefties.”
Struggling against both lefties and righties this season, McNeil entered Saturday with a .227/.296/.320 slash line overall. Conversely, Iglesias, in a small sample of 19 plate appearances, has produced a .389/.421/.444 clip. His career OPS of .760 against left-handers slightly surpasses McNeil’s .744, and Iglesias is widely regarded as an elite defensive infielder.
How long this platoon lasts will depend on Iglesias’ performance and McNeil’s ability to overcome his slump. In the meantime, McNeil has been taking daily batting practice, which he usually skips when playing regularly. Both Mendoza and McNeil expect him back in the starting lineup on Sunday against right-hander Taijuan Walker.
“I’m going to continue to say Jeff McNeil is our second baseman,” Mendoza stated. “There’s nothing more to it other than four lefties here, Iglesias playing well — I’ll give him another start. Jeff will be fine. I know it’s been six days or so since he’s been in the lineup, but he’ll continue to work, and he’ll get going.”
