Some good news out of Port St. Lucie as first baseman Lucas Duda finally hit off a batting tee on Wednesday.
It was the first time he’s swung a bat in almost four weeks since straining an intercostal muscle near his rib cage.
Duda received a cortisone shot for the strain, which he dealt with once before during the 2013 season.
The Mets first baseman is expected to participate in regular batting practice in 3-4 days and then play in Grapefruit League games after that.
February 26
In his daily briefing with reporters on Thursday, Mets manager Terry Collins said that Lucas Duda will need at least another week before he starts swinging a bat again.
The Mets first baseman is trying to recover from a left oblique strain that was initially supposed to sideline him for 2-3 days.
Duda has been able to participate in running and fielding drills, so I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about and that the Mets are just being extra cautious.
February 24
First baseman Lucas Duda has mild right oblique strain, the team announced. The injury will keep him from swinging a bat for 2-3 days. He was able to participate in fielding drills this morning.
Adam Rubin added that Terry Collins speculated Duda probably “overdid things.”
The manager noted that he showed up at the Mets’ spring-training complex on a Sunday a month ago and found Duda in the cage swinging.
“He’s going to start hitting in two to three days and everything is going to be fine,” Collins said Tuesday afternoon.
Update: Lucas Duda just told reporters that he received a cortisone shot for the oblique strain and hasn’t been swinging a bat for a couple weeks. A fact that Terry Collins failed to mention when he briefed reporters, or was completely oblivious to.
