5 months agoNew York Mets infielder
Jeff McNeil will draw into the starting lineup for the first time this postseason in Game 5 of the National League Championship Series on Friday at Citi Field against the Los Angeles Dodgers and right-hander
Jack Flaherty. McNeil will start at second base and bat eighth. The 32-year-old former batting champion fractured his right wrist in early September and didn't rejoin the team until the start of the NLCS. He saw three pinch-hitting appearances in the first four games of the series but was unable to record a hit. With McNeil jumping into the starting lineup,
Jose Iglesias will retreat to the bench for a must-win game for New York. McNeil has only faced Flaherty three times in his career and has a single and a strikeout. He'll be a low-upside DFS play on Friday's slate.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
6 months agoNew York Mets infielder/outfielder
Jeff McNeil is not in the team's starting lineup for Game 3 of the National League Championship Series on Wednesday at Citi Field against the Los Angeles Dodgers. McNeil fractured his right wrist in early September and wasn't on the team's roster for the Wild-Card Series or the NL Division Series, but he rejoined the roster for the NLCS against the Dodgers. In the first two games of the series in LA, the 32-year-old former batting champion only saw one pinch-hitting appearance and lined out. He'll start on the bench with the team facing right-hander
Walker Buehler, who McNeil has gone 1-for-9 against in his career with a walk and two strikeouts. McNeil didn't look anything like a former batting champion at the plate in 2024 and might just serve as a bench bat for the Mets for the remainder of the postseason.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
6 months agoNew York Mets infielder/outfielder
Jeff McNeil is absent from the team's starting lineup for Game 2 of the National League Championship Series on Monday at Dodger Stadium against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Mets will stick with
Jose Iglesias at second base, and he will hit seventh. Meanwhile,
Starling Marte will make another start in right field and will bat fifth against Dodgers right-handed opener
Ryan Brasier. McNeil fractured his right wrist in early September and remained on the injured list during the NL Division Series against the Philadelphia Phillies. The 32-year-old former batting champion came off the bench as a pinch-hitter in the 9-0 loss to the Dodgers in Game 1 and lined out. There's a good chance we'll see McNeil come off the bench at some point as a pinch-hitter again in Game 2. McNeil hit a career-low .238 (101-for-424) with 12 homers, 44 RBI and five steals. The Mets may just use him as a bench bat the rest of the way in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Newsday - Tim Healey
6 months agoNew York Mets infielder/outfielder
Jeff McNeil (wrist) has a "really good chance" to be on the team's roster for the National League Championship Series, which starts on Sunday against either the Los Angeles Dodgers or San Diego Padres, according to manager
Carlos Mendoza. McNeil has been out since Sept. 6 due to a fractured right wrist, but he's scheduled to see live at-bats in the Arizona Fall League on Friday and Saturday and expects to be ready to go by Sunday. He will play both second base and right field in the AFL. As long as he doesn't have any setbacks with his wrist, McNeil will likely take the roster spot of infield prospect
Luisangel Acuna, who has mostly been a defensive replacement in the postseason. Veteran
Jose Iglesias continues to play well, so it remains to be seen how Mendoza will deploy McNeil, but both he and Iglesias could fall into something of a platoon at the keystone.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - Anthony DiComo
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