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The Mets’ playoff push will be without Francisco Lindor for a fourth straight day.
Lindor will not be in the lineup Thursday against the Phillies due to his back issue as the Mets kick off a four-game homestand against the NL East leaders, according to SNY.
The NL MVP candidate had said Monday he would be sidelined for three-to-five days and it now appears he will return — at the earliest — at the end of that window.
Lindor last played Sunday against these same Phillies, playing one inning at shortstop before being removed in the 2-1 walk-off loss.
He missed Saturday’s game, his first absence of the year, the prior day due to the back issue.
He said his back had been bothering him for more than week but he aggravated it Friday while running the bases in a blowout win over the Phillies.
Lindor received a clean MRI exam that opened the path to him returning this week.
“The best-case scenario would be playing against the Nationals,” Lindor said Monday. “But I don’t know how realistic that is. We will see how I react [Tuesday] and if the trainers allow me to move. I am going to force their hands, but I respect their decision and the way they go about things.”
Lindor missed the entire Nationals series but the Mets did not miss a beat without him, sweeping Washington for the third time this season.
Prospect Luisangel Acuna held down the fort in Lindor’s absence, going 5-for-8 with two homers and four RBIs while starting at shortstop the past two nights.
Thursday’s opener kicks off a tough 10-game stretch to close the Mets’ (84-68) season that will determine whether they return to the playoffs for the second time in three years.
The Mets own the No. 5 seed in the NL thanks to a tiebreaker advantage over the Diamondbacks and have a two-game lead over the Braves for a playoff spot.
They will face Atlanta on the road next week — with the series winner owning the tiebreaker after splitting the first 10 games — before finishing the year in Milwaukee against the NL Central champion Brewers.
“I am expecting (discomfort) to last the rest of the year, but it’s going to be manageable,” Lindor said earlier this week.
