MLB

Mets not rushing Bay’s recovery from concussion

This second concussion is the game-changer for Jason Bay.

The Mets said yesterday they will give the beleaguered left fielder all the time he needs to recover from Friday night’s concussion, but the reality is they have no idea as to what kind of player Bay will be when he returns from this most serious of injuries and they have no idea when he will be able to return. He could be gone for the rest of the season.

Who knows if Bay will be able to bounce back at all? Bay suffered his first concussion in late July 2010 and was never the player the Mets thought they were getting when they signed him to a four-year, $66 million contract.

“I hope we can get this guy back, but I don’t know what it’s going to take because I am really worried about the severity of this injury,’’ manager Terry Collins said as his Mets were swept by the Reds after a 3-1 loss at Citi Field. “Anything is possible.”

Bay was injured as he slid head first into the left field wall.

Bay suffered his first concussion when he slammed into the left field wall at Dodger Stadium. At the time, he was hitting .259 with a .347 on base percentage and a .402 slugging percentage.

Since that concussion Bay has hit only .237 with a .318 on base percentage and a .374 slugging percentage. Who knows how much that concussion set him back and now that he will have to fight back from a second concussion, who knows what the ramifications will be? The Mets, like all sports teams, are dealing with the great unknown of concussions.

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“There’s the possibility he doesn’t bounce back from it,’’ Collins said. “I look at his close friend Justin Morneau and how he’s been suffering. Does the fog ever leave? You’re looking at a couple of guys who have had real bad concussions and it’s taken a while for them to get it going.’’

This is about Bay’s future as a husband and a father.

David Wright told The Post he has been in touch with Bay and said the left fielder is in good spirits.

“Forget about baseball,’’ Wright said. “You’re not worried about baseball, you want him to become healthy because you start talking about those head injuries and it’s a scary thing. The baseball thing is on the backburner now. A hamstring or a cracked rib heals, but your brain is something you have to take care of. He needs to take his time and get this thing figured out.”

“When guys start having multiple concussions, it makes you nervous.’’

“We are going to follow the doctor’s lead,’’ general manager Sandy Alderson told The Post. “We certainly are not going to push to get him back if it is not medically indicated at this point, particularly with the fact that he has a history. We have to be cautious and make sure from a medical standpoint.

“It’s a tough situation because he plays all out, he gives it everything he’s got, the results have not been what he would like, what Mets fans would like, but it’s really unfortunate that some people can’t separate the effort from the results.”

Bay has tried much too hard to succeed in New York.

“He put way too much pressure on himself to try to live up to all the expectations instead of just going out and playing and enjoy playing,’’ Collins said.

Bay, 33, has been resting at home. He may be better suited to play for another team, perhaps as a designated hitter, but that would mean the Mets would have to eat what’s left of his contract.

“You just don’t give guys away,’’ Collins said.

“After the other night, my ride home with my wife, we talked about what would we do in a situation like that if I were a father, a husband and look down the road 15 years from now,’’ Collins added. “I don’t know.’’

For Jason Bay, there is only the fog of questions with no answers.