DENVER — Juan Lagares isn’t officially the Mets’ everyday center fielder, but good luck trying to remove him from the lineup.
Though manager Terry Collins has discussed an outfield rotation, Lagares was the starter Saturday for a third straight game since his return from the disabled list, and contributed a big RBI single in the top of the ninth to give the Mets a one-run lead in a game they went on to lose, 11-10, on Charlie Culberson’s two-run, pinch-hit homer off Kyle Farnsworth in the bottom of the ninth.
Chris Young was in left and Curtis Granderson in right, squeezing out Eric Young Jr. for the third straight game.
“Obviously, [Lagares] is swinging very well, and this is a place where you want a premier center fielder to be in this ballpark,” Collins said before the Mets faced the Rockies at Coors Field. “I’m going to leave him out there and hopefully he keeps swinging the way he has been.”
Lagares, who went just 1-for-6. entered with an 11-game hitting streak, during which he was 15-for-45 (.333).
David Wright entered play with one home run and had gone 27 games without hitting one, tying the second-longest streak of his career, but Collins said he wasn’t concerned about the drought.
“I don’t really think about it too much,” Collins said of Wright, who went 3-for-5 with an RBI and two runs. “This guy has hit four balls that should be homers, four or five balls in our park in lousy weather. If he’s sitting there today with five homers playing in our park, nobody would be saying a word.
“Just because he hasn’t hit any on the road yet doesn’t mean he doesn’t have any power. We’ve just got to turn our head and hope he keeps hitting the ball on the barrel.”
Lucas Duda got the start against lefty Franklin Morales, as the Mets move toward making Duda a full-time first baseman.
“If he’s going to be the everyday first baseman here, he’s got to start getting in there against lefties,” Collins said.
The manager said if Duda is going to play against lefties, he must show a willingness to hit the ball to the opposite field.
“Don’t worry about hitting the ball in the seats necessarily, unless you get the pitch to do it,” Collins said. “Otherwise, do damage in the other fields.”