ATLANTA — Francisco Lindor’s latest attempt at a hot streak has nose-dived, but Mets officials don’t want him changing anything at this point.
“I think that the results are not there, but I think he is where he needs to be,” manager Luis Rojas said before the Mets rallied to beat the Braves, 4-3, on Tuesday. “There’s some things that are going to happen because he is in a good position to hit from both sides. I’m sticking to that right now.”
Rojas cited the quality of swings Lindor has taken in recent days. Lindor entered play 2-for-19 (.105) since the first game of Friday’s doubleheader against the Phillies. He went 1-for-3 Tuesday, with his seventh-inning single providing the go-ahead run.
The All-Star shortstop’s batting average has peaked at .222 on two occasions this month, but the hot streak the Mets have expected hasn’t arrived.
“I know it took a while for him to show some consistency from one day to another,” Rojas said. “He hasn’t gotten that for a whole week period yet, but the signs that he is showing lately are similar to the signs he showed in spring training and entering the season, even though he wasn’t getting the results. We have got to trust his ability to hit.”
Jerad Eickhoff was designated for assignment a day after he allowed five earned runs — including four homers — over six innings in a loss to the Nationals. The veteran right-hander pitched to a 4.50 ERA in two starts for the Mets. Thomas Szapucki was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to give the Mets a fresh arm who could pitch in long relief if needed. The left-hander Szapucki has pitched to a 4.41 ERA in eight appearances for Syracuse.
Jeurys Familia pitched a scoreless inning in a minor league rehab game at Syracuse on Tuesday. Brandon Nimmo and Tomas Nido were in the lineup for the same game. Nimmo was 0-for-4 with a walk and Nido went 1-for-4. J.D. Davis is expected to join the Syracuse lineup on Wednesday and Jonathan Villar the following day. Familia, who is eligible to come off the injured list Thursday, might be the first to return. Rojas has indicated Nimmo is expected back for the weekend series against the Yankees.
The Mets had committed five errors in their previous two games, entering play, disturbing Rojas somewhat.
“It’s cost us extra outs, extra pitches,” said Rojas, whose team played an error-free game in Tuesday’s win. “And that is one part that is going to make our pitching more effective, when we limit their pitch counts because we’re playing good defense behind them and keep trusting the ability we have as a defensive team because we have been better than we were last year.”