<
        >

          New York Mets

          So what now for Mets after losing Ruben Tejada?

          • Adam Rubin, ESPN Staff WriterOct 11, 2015, 06:34 AM
            Close
              Adam Rubin has covered the Mets since 2003. He's a graduate of Mepham High School on Long Island and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He joined ESPNNewYork after spending 10 years at the New York Daily News.
              Follow Adam on Twitter »  Chat archive »
            Follow on X

          LOS ANGELES -- So what now for the New York Mets after Chase Utley's questionable takeout slide on Ruben Tejada turned the tide of Game 2 of the National League Division Series?

          In a clubhouse filled with incensed players late Saturday, captain David Wright calmly noted that the Mets still will return to Citi Field for Monday's Game 3 having earned a split against Los Angeles Dodgers aces Clayton Kershaw and Zack Greinke.

          "We knew it was going to be a tough series," Wright said after the Mets' 5-2 loss on Saturday night at Dodger Stadium. "It would have been nice to take two here. Anytime you can take go 1-1 against Kershaw and Greinke in their house, I guess we'll take it. But we wanted to get greedy and take this second game and head back to New York with a 2-0 lead. It will be a pivotal Game 3. It's going to be a fun series."

          Tejada suffered a fractured right fibula, ending his postseason. Wilmer Flores now ascends to the starting shortstop role. While there may be some dip in defense, Flores arguably has a stronger bat than Tejada. The real issue is that the Mets no longer have a bona fide backup shortstop. Eric Campbell would appear the most logical taxi-squad player to replace Tejada on the NLDS roster, but neither he nor Kelly Johnson is a shortstop beyond an absolute emergency situation.

          "Flo's played plenty of shortstop, and we've got a lot of confidence in him at short," Wright said. "You never want to see somebody take over because of an injury, but Flo's logged plenty of innings at short and done a great job over there."

          The pitching matchup in Game 3 favors the Mets, with Matt Harvey opposing Brett Anderson.

          "We've got a lot of right guys to be on the mound in this rotation," Wright said. "But yeah, I like our chances with Matt."

          As for losing Tejada, Wright added, "You try to rally around that. You try to go out there and get a win or two for Ruben. It's a guy that sticks his neck out there trying to turn a big double play knowing that he's going to get hit. That's the definition of a great teammate: a guy that tries to make that play knowing that he's going to get hit."

          Wright said Tejada recognized the gravity of the injury as he awaited a cart to transport him off the field. Tejada did not comment postgame. He departed the clubhouse with a crutch and walking boot.

          "I think he knew right away that something was wrong," Wright said. "I'm not sure if he tried to stand or kind of moved it around a little bit. He kind of knew right away. Just somber, I guess, is the right word for it."