Mets expect Lucas Duda to miss only 15 days

The New York Mets expect first baseman Lucas Duda to miss the minimum 15 days due to his back injury, Sandy Alderson told reporters on Monday.

Duda, who was placed on the disabled list prior to Saturday’s game, is eligible too return on September 5.

Duda, was hitting .247/.346/.472 with 21 home runs and 56 RBI prior to exiting Friday’s game early and landing on the DL.

Daniel Murphy has been playing first base in Duda’s stead, with Michael Cuddyer also available to fill in if needed.

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Thoughts:

Because the Mets were in Colorado, Lucas Duda was sent to David Wright‘s back specialist in Los Angeles, who diagnosed a minor strain.

The news on Duda is as good as expected, and it appears he simply tried to return too soon from the injury — leading to a flareup and a stint on the disabled list.

With David Wright now active, the fact that Duda is on the disabled list likely prevented Michael Conforto from getting sent to Triple-A Las Vegas for a week or so.

Prior to Wright being activated, the Mets played with 13 pitchers and 12 position players, but they reverted to the 13 position player/12 pitcher alignment when Dario Alvarez was demoted after Sunday’s game.

Once Duda returns, assuming no other players suffer injuries, the Mets will have their best lineup — including the recently-acquired Yoenis Cespedes — for the first time this season.

Against most starting pitchers, the lineup should consist of Travis d’Arnaud, Duda, Daniel Murphy, Wilmer Flores, Wright, Conforto, Cespedes, and Curtis Granderson.