PORT ST. LUCIE — Jeff McNeil waited until the last week of spring training, but he finally got into the Mets lineup.
“I definitely got a little bit delayed, but there is still plenty of time to get ready,” McNeil said Tuesday before going 0-for-3 with a walk in the Mets’ 3-1 exhibition win over the Cardinals at Clover Park.
The original plan called for McNeil to play five innings and receive three at-bats.
Jeff McNeil hits a foul ball during the Mets’ 3-1 exhibition win over the Cardinals. Rich Storry-USA TODAY Sports McNeil will get a day off Wednesday then resume in the Grapefruit League a day later, with the March 28 opener at Citi Field looming.
In his first at-bat of the spring, McNeil displayed his trademark grittiness and worked an 11-pitch walk against Lance Lynn.
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McNeil had biceps discomfort early in camp that led to a shutdown from swinging.
He gradually had to build up over the past two weeks and wasn’t cleared to take swings against high velocity until last weekend.
“Sometimes the fewer at-bats could be beneficial,” McNeil said of his late start. “You don’t get those bad thoughts and bad habits. You kind of let your natural ability take over and roll into the season, so I have always succeeded well early in live batting practice and stuff like that, so we’ll see what happens.”
As an added twist, McNeil was in the cleanup spot for his spring debut, but manager Carlos Mendoza downplayed the significance as he searches for a batting order.
Jeff McNeil and Pete Alonso talk during the Mets’ exhibition victory. Rich Storry-USA TODAY Sports “Don’t make too much out of it right now,” Mendoza said. “We have got to get him at-bats. But bat-to-ball skills, batting average, he’s a hitter. But as we speak today, it’s get him as many at-bats as possible.”
But Mendoza also said he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of McNeil’s hitting cleanup. On this night, Brandon Nimmo, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso were the hitters ahead of McNeil.
Hardly a prototypical cleanup hitter, McNeil would bring a different look to the spot.
And McNeil’s batting fourth would also allow Mendoza to split up the left-handed and right-handed batters throughout his lineup.
“We can talk about Pete and who hits behind him, but the way I see it, who hits in front of him, too?” Mendoza said. “That is a way to protect him, and if you put guys that are going to be on base, you put it on the other team whether they want to pitch to him or not. Those are some of the things we’re looking at, not necessarily who is hitting behind [Alonso] but who is hitting in front of him.”
McNeil has bounced around the lineup through his career and said he doesn’t have a preference where he hits in the batting order.
“I will do anything,” he said. “It doesn’t matter. You just want to see your name in the lineup every day and whatever helps this team win.”
The lineup the Mets fielded against the Cardinals — albeit not necessarily in the same order — could be the one on display in the opener. Included was Brett Baty at third base and Mark Vientos in the DH spot with Harrison Bader in center field.
McNeil looks to rebound from a season in which he slumped into early September before picking up his production in the final month. Overall, he owned a .270/.333/.378 slash line with 10 homers and 55 RBIs.
The goal before the opener, according to McNeil, is to receive about 20 at-bats in exhibition games.
“I kind of got to get in as many [games] as possible,” he said. “Make sure I get as many at-bats and seeing big league pitchers, as well. It’s different going to the [minor league] side, a different environment, so hitting in the big league games will be key.”
