Lindor (sore right side) scratched, games streak halted at 223

NEW YORK -- Entering Friday night’s series opener against the Braves at Citi Field, the Mets had played 114 games. Francisco Lindor had been in uniform on the field for every single one of them.

But as the first pitch of the 115th game approached, Lindor was not at his customary position at shortstop.

The reason was a bout of right side tightness, which cost Lindor his franchise-record streak of 223 consecutive games played in the Mets' 7-0 loss.

Lindor underwent an MRI exam on Saturday that revealed "pretty good news, all things considered," according to manager Buck Showalter.

“It’s my goal to be available every single day,” Lindor said. “And today, I wasn’t.”

Originally in Friday’s lineup, Lindor became a late scratch when he felt abnormal soreness in his right side during batting practice. He continued to hit and take extra fielding practice with a coach, but when the sensation lingered, Lindor told the training staff what he was feeling.

Afterward, Lindor said the discomfort is not nearly as great as when he missed five weeks in 2021 due to a strained right oblique.

Given the fact that they no longer expect to contend for a playoff spot, the Mets had little reason to risk things with Lindor, who has another eight seasons and $272.8 million remaining on his 10-year, $341 million extension.

Jonathan Araúz took over at shortstop for the series opener in place of Lindor, who was slashing .270/.339/.449 with 22 homers and 18 stolen bases.

Thus ended a streak that may seem modest in historic terms, but was unique in the modern game. Last month, Lindor played in his 201st consecutive game, passing José Reyes for the most in franchise history -- the shortest such streak of any MLB team, representing just 8.5% of Cal Ripken Jr.’s record 2,632-game run with the Orioles.

Lindor had started all but one of the 223 games he played during his streak. He had also been one of only 10 Major Leaguers to appear in all his team’s games this season, along with Marcus Semien, Juan Soto, Anthony Volpe, Freddie Freeman, Eugenio Suárez, Ronald Acuña Jr., Ozzie Albies, Matt Olson and Austin Riley.

Lindor missed only one contest in 2022, after he accidentally slammed a hotel door on his finger in Los Angeles. Before Friday’s scratch, his 275 games since Opening Day ‘22 were tied for second in the Majors -- one behind Semien.

These days, such streaks are increasingly rare. Teams employ performance staffs tasked with reviewing data such as sleep patterns, nutrition and effort expended; they commonly recommend maintenance days based on those and other factors.

But exceptions do exist.

The Braves, for example, employ four of the 10 players who have appeared in every game this season. That’s been a key to their success, as evidenced Friday by Riley’s three-hit attack against Tylor Megill and the Mets.

Lindor is of a similar breed. Over his first six full Major League seasons, Lindor appeared in at least 158 games four times. He also played in all 60 during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

“Sometimes, you have to be somewhat of a protector for them, because they’re not going to do it themselves necessarily,” Showalter said. “They have too much pride. So it’s something that I -- and we -- have to be on top of.”

Before Lindor was scratched, Showalter discussed his shortstop’s desire to become the second Mets player to appear in every game of a 162-game season. (Felix Millan accomplished it in 1975. Another Met, John Olerud, tallied 162 in 1999 thanks to a one-game playoff against the Reds, but he had missed a game earlier that season.)

Showalter mentioned Lindor, Brandon Nimmo and Pete Alonso as players who have been battling nagging physical issues. If he felt any of those players were putting themselves in unnecessary danger, Showalter said, he might have to take the decision out of their hands.

“One thing about Francisco Lindor, since the day that he got here, he’s a guy that takes a lot of pride in playing,” Showalter added. “A lot of guys take that [big contract] and use it as a reason to go the other direction. You don’t have to worry about that with him.

“You’re going to get everything he’s got the whole time that he’s a member of this organization.”