Jeff McNeil's return to Mets for NLCS important for both him and team
Mets second baseman Jeff McNeil throws during batting practice before Game 1 of the NLCS against the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Sunday. Credit: Newsday/William Perlman
LOS ANGELES — At the end of a mad rush to get back on the field, a compressed rehabilitation regimen across four states at a time of year when it was not certain the Mets’ season would continue, Jeff McNeil actually did it — and in the process created a fun footnote for his family.
The Mets included him on their roster for the National League Championship Series, making room by dropping reliever Adam Ottavino before Game 1 against the Dodgers on Sunday night. McNeil broke his right wrist about five weeks earlier.
For McNeil, it was a personally significant accomplishment. He has been in the organization since 2013 and in the majors since 2018 and had never come close to sniffing this stage of the postseason, so getting involved was important to him.
For the McNeils, more generally, it also was very cool.
Jeff grew up in Santa Barbara and went to college at Long Beach State. He was a Dodgers fan then, and the first major-league game of his life came at Dodger Stadium.
When his son, Lucas, was born in 2022, he was only 6 days old when he attended his first game — also at Dodger Stadium, because his father played in the All-Star Game here.
McNeil and his wife, Tatiana, just welcomed a daughter, Serena, this month. On Sunday, at 9 days old, she went to her first game — at, yes, Dodger Stadium.
“It means a lot to play in this ballpark,” McNeil said. “My family is going to have some pretty good memories as well.
“Just to be back right now means a lot. I wanted to play in the playoffs. It’s been tough watching. But a lot of fun, at the same time, seeing how this team’s been playing . . . Just being in this organization for as long as I have and not getting too deep in the playoffs, it means a lot to play in such a big series here. So just super-happy.”
Sentimentality aside, McNeil’s return meant a lot to the Mets, too. As a lefthanded hitter who can play second base, rightfield and leftfield, he offers manager Carlos Mendoza a great degree of versatility on a suddenly deeper bench.
After ramping up baseball activities at home in California and with the Mets in Philadelphia and in New York, McNeil said he experienced “no problems at all” in two Arizona Fall League games.
McNeil was not in the lineup for Game 1, but stay tuned.
“A lot can happen, especially in a seven-game series,” Mendoza said. “Who knows? Get a start or two. He might be getting the biggest at-bat of the series at some point.
“He’s a big part of this team. He’s been a big part of this team. He’s a huge reason why we’re here. Obviously, him being down, we missed him. The fact that he worked really hard to put himself in a position where he’s a player for us, here he is. So you gotta give him credit.”
McNeil said: “He told me just to be ready. It’s going to change day-to-day. Be ready to come off the bench. Take some big at-bats.”
Jose Iglesias has been the Mets’ regular second baseman in McNeil’s absence, and for most of that stretch, it was an easy call. In addition to bringing “energy and vibes,” as lefthander Sean Manaea put it, Iglesias is adept defensively and had been hitting well.
But Iglesias went 6-for-29 (.207) with no extra-base hits, seven strikeouts and no walks in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
“You say he cooled down, but I still like our chances when he’s at the plate,” Mendoza said. “You know he’s going to put the ball in play. He’s been in big moments before. And what he does on the field defensively at second base, at third base, the energy, how engaged, conversations with the pitcher in certain situations. There’s a lot that he brings. He’s a really good player.”
Boosting McNeil’s chances of playing time: The Dodgers have only one lefthanded pitcher, reliever Anthony Banda (briefly a member of the 2021 Mets). Another lefty reliever, Alex Vesia, is out with an intercostal strain suffered during the NLDS against the Padres.
“We’ll see how the next couple of games unfold,” Mendoza said. “If I have to make some adjustments, I will.”
The Mets could play McNeil at second, Iglesias at third and Mark Vientos at DH. That would mean benching Jesse Winker and J.D. Martinez.
“I haven’t gotten that far,” Mendoza said. “But everything is on the table.”
Ottavino was unhappy upon being excluded, Mendoza said, but “handled it very professionally.”
After re-signing with the Mets in January as a late-inning option, Ottavino, 38, got demoted to lower-leverage spots by mid-June. Mendoza didn’t use him in any of their first seven postseason games.
“They made a decision and I live with it and move forward,” said Ottavino, who still is allowed and indeed planned to sit in the bullpen during games. “They told me that I was going to be inactive. David [Stearns, president of baseball operations] just said it came down to a matchup thing and stay ready.
“I didn’t say anything back to David. I just said OK. I talked to Mendy today. I’ll keep that conversation private, but it doesn’t matter how I feel about it. It matters what they want to do. That’s their right.”
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
