The New York Mets are on the road to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers in a clash of two of Major League Baseball’s best teams. But — due to a truly bizarre injury — the Mets are without their starting shortstop, Francisco Lindor, for Game 1 of the series.
Lindor was held out of the lineup for Thursday’s game because he shut his hotel room door on his hand, injuring the middle finger on his right hand.
Francisco Lindor accidentally slammed his hotel room door on his finger. Sounds like he will be out of the Mets' lineup today.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) June 2, 2022
It was Lindor’s middle finger on his right hand. https://t.co/TxVvVSGbDR
— Deesha (@DeeshaThosar) June 2, 2022
This news brought a prevalent feeling among MLB fans. The Mets are one of the best teams in baseball, and by any metric, this team is a lot different than the ones who have collapsed in recent seasons. Still, this kind of weird bad luck seems to follow this franchise.
The Mets are back! https://t.co/YHDOxlos4v
— Mojo Hill (@mojohill22) June 3, 2022
what could possibly go mets https://t.co/dNwhPL1eVd
— A Potato 🥔 (@StillNotMyYacht) June 3, 2022
That’s such a Mets thing to happen https://t.co/gtgNJITtlX
— Blake Pulliam (@pulliam_blake) June 3, 2022
The weird thing is that the Mets keep TRYING to Mets it up as usual,,but then they keep winning anyway. https://t.co/RalnTRYM3g
— Gregory Isaac (@GTIRUNS) June 3, 2022
There is nothing more Mets than this. https://t.co/9pMrKAICR3
— Todd Cordell (@ToddCordell) June 3, 2022
It's June 2 so Mets just about ready to start Mets-ing again. https://t.co/BxS7RPG8Eo
— Daniel O'Leary (@DanOLeary25) June 2, 2022
Lindor is officially a Met. https://t.co/04jy99dAHc
— Nathalie Alonso (@NathalieMLB) June 2, 2022
While Lindor’s injury is unusual, it’s hardly unprecedented in baseball — a sport known for bizarre injuries. Goose Gossage once threw out his back sneezing, as did Sammy Sosa. Jeremy Affeldt did as well, and he sustained a collection of other weird injuries during his career.
And fortunately, this doesn’t seem like it will be a long-term injury for Lindor. Prior to releasing the lineup, New York manager Buck Showalter speculated that Lindor would “probably need a day” to heal, but also thought that Lindor might be able to be the designated hitter. While Showalter ultimately kept Lindor out of the lineup, he doesn’t seem overly concerned about the long-term ramifications.
Still, this should be a lesson to all of us to be sure our hands are completely clear of doors when shutting them. No matter how many times we’ve done it in the past, it’s never too late to get back to basics.
[Anthony DiComo, Deesha Thosar]
