New York Mets hitting extraordinaire Jeff McNeil exited Monday’s game against the Miami Marlins in the fourth inning due to what the team described as right hamstring tightness.
The issue seemed to arise when the lefty broke for home from third base on a wild pitch delivered by Trevor Rodgers, easing up halfway down the line and crossing the plate gingerly to make it a 3-0 game.
He was replaced by Luis Guillorme at second base.
Such an issue has been a lingering one for McNeil, who attempted to play through hamstring tightness in 2021 — prompting early and likely extreme caution from the team moving forward.
McNeil is the club’s most valuable natural hitter, exiting the game with a team-high .327 batting average that also ranks third-best in the National League.
The 2022 season has been a significant bounce-back campaign for the 30-year-old, who began his MLB career by posting a .319 batting average over his first 248 games between the 2018-2020 seasons. In 2021, however, he batted a career-worst .251 to go with. a.679 OPS while playing through that hamstring tightness.
Thanks to his torrid start to this year, McNeil ranks second all-time in franchise history with a .303 career batting average.
