St. Louis – Brandonnimo equaled the Mets’ record by driving in nine runs in a recent game, but he has since fallen ill.
If there was a moment to mark his return after the previous game in Washington, it would be Friday night when he successfully reached base five times for the Mets.
This performance included three hits and a home run, lifting his OPS to .720.
Yet, just like the previous Sunday, he was struggling, showing an OPS of .575 at that time.
“Start small again,” Nimmo advised after his impressive outing before the rain-interrupted Mets-Cardinals game. “Don’t overly focus on replicating those nine-RBI days or hitting Grand Slams. Just aim for a base hit and build from there.”
Nimmo dealt with flu-like symptoms during the Mets’ three-game series against Arizona, yet still managed to go 5-for-5 over two games, starting in only one.
He mentioned feeling like he had caught up on sleep, managing around 12 hours before Friday’s game, which he believed helped him rebound.
“I’m trying to get back to health and hoping to play every day again, so I can regain my rhythm,” he noted. “It’s unfortunate this happened when I was feeling unwell, but I can’t control everything.”
Manager Carlos Mendoza is looking for ways to reintegrate Edwin Diaz, who hasn’t pitched in over a week.
Diaz last appeared on April 26 in Washington, where he threw nine scoreless innings for his seventh save.
Mendoza had chosen not to use Diaz in a save opportunity immediately after, worrying about overuse.
The Mets have gone five consecutive games without needing a save.
In two of those matches, they faced challenging scenarios near the end against the Diamondbacks.
“These situations can be tricky,” stated Mendoza. “When you’re behind, it’s easy to steer away from him, particularly in this case.”
Paul Blackburn threw 41 pitches in three innings during his rehab outing for Single A Brooklyn.
Mendoza aims to stretch his right-hander to about 75 pitches before contemplating a return to the big league club.
Blackburn is currently recovering from right knee inflammation.
The Mets have given up 16 home runs this season, marking the fifth-lowest total in franchise history after 33 games.
Over the last 31 seasons, only the 1997 Braves (10), the 1997 Marlins (14), the 2015 Nationals (15), and the 2012 Nationals (15) have allowed fewer home runs in their first 33 games of the season.
