NOTHING GOING WRIGHT: David Wright reacts after striking out to end the Mets’ 4-2 defeat to the Dodgers yesterday at Citi Field — the club’s second loss of the day after starter Chris Young (above) was placed on the disabled list with a shoulder problem. (AP )
The Mets aren’t quite sure what’s wrong with Chris Young and they haven’t figured out how to fix him.
It’s similar to what general manager Sandy Alderson is trying to do with the organization.
Young, who felt tightness in his troublesome right shoulder while warming up Saturday, was placed on the 15-day disabled list before yesterday’s 4-2 loss to the Dodgers. He had an MRI exam yesterday morning and will have another consultation today as the Mets try to determine the severity of his injury.
And though the MRI results were somewhat inconclusive — one doctor reviewed the exam and reported swelling in the back of his surgi cally re paired shoulder — it’s hard to be opti mistic about the oft-injured Young.
Worse, although the Mets have Dillon Gee available to take Young’s spot in the rotation, Alderson admitted “there’s not much behind him.”
That’s because of a lack of prospects in the system, as well as healthy arms. One possibility is Pat Misch, who was called up from Triple-A Buffalo to take Young’s roster spot. To make room on the 40-man roster, Johan Santana was moved to the 60-day DL.
While Young was sweating out a diagnosis, the Mets had their three-game win streak snapped at Citi Field, with Andre Ethier, whose 30-game hitting streak ended Saturday, homering off R.A. Dickey (1-4) in the seventh inning for the game’s most important hit. Ethier’s homer provided the difference when the Mets’ ninth-inning rally fell short.
Jose Reyes had an RBI triple with one out in the ninth to get the Mets to within two runs, but Carlos Beltran pinch-hit and flied to short right and David Wright struck out to end it.
“A .500 homestand obviously isn’t good enough,” Wright said of the 3-3 stretch. “It’s nice to win a series, but we’ve gotta do better than that.”
Young’s injury helps show just what kind of shape the Mets are in as a franchise.
“We are getting thin,” Alderson said. “If you look at our 40-man roster, those who aren’t here or aren’t on the disabled list are pretty young and inexperienced.”
And Alderson is in the midst of revamping that roster. Young was someone they took a chance on and he pitched well when his arm has allowed him to take the mound, but he’s already been on the DL with biceps tendinitis. This could be more serious.
“He had a tear in the back of his shoulder, which is what he rehabbed all of last year,” Alderson said. “The question is whether this is a new injury, whether this is an aggravation of an old injury or whether it’s just an acute response to kind of a chronic condition.”
The Mets seem to have an abundance of chronic conditions — and a hard time maintaining consistency.
“We’ve been a team of streaks, good and bad,” Wright said. “It’s very important we capitalize when we’re playing well.”
Now they have a challenge of a six-game road trip, starting tonight at Colorado and continuing in Houston.
But Alderson knows he has to look beyond streaks if the Mets intend on contending anytime soon. And the GM, who said he was restricted last offseason because of a lack of payroll “flexibility,” is still looking for ways to improve this team.
“We’re running through a couple of [our new players], so it’s up to us to find more depth,” Alderson said. “I don’t mean big deals, but being aware of what’s out there.”