Jeff McNeil is on the kind of roll during which even a 1-for-4 performance becomes a statement of sorts to the Mets.
The rookie second baseman looked sharp against Madison Bumgarner, delivering a seventh-inning single, but also smacking two pitches — with exit velocities of 102 and 97 mph — that went for outs against the Giants ace lefty in the Mets’ 3-1 loss Thursday at Citi Field.
McNeil, who extended his hitting streak to eight games, wasn’t an automatic to play against Bumgarner, but perhaps showed he can be trusted even against a difficult lefty.
“I just saw the ball well,” McNeil said. “He got it over the plate and I just got a barrel on it. Wasn’t trying to do too much up there.”
McNeil is 15-for-31 (.484) during his hitting streak.
“He just continues to acknowledge that he has great barrel awareness,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “He can put the barrel on the ball. Madison Bumgarner is tough and he’s especially tough on lefties and [McNeil] stays in there and gets his barrel on it somehow.”
Devin Mesoraco, who departed the game in the fifth inning with neck stiffness, will undergo an MRI exam on Friday, according to Callaway. Rookie catcher Tomas Nido is scheduled to join the Mets as a September callup, but could be recalled a week early if Mesoraco needs a disabled list stint.
Jay Bruce is scheduled to rejoin the Mets on Friday after spending the past two months on the disabled list with a hip strain. The Mets’ plan calls for Bruce to move between right field and first base.
“We’re going to talk to [Bruce], make sure he is comfortable,” Callaway said. “I think initially it would be tough to just start playing him every day, so we’re going to have to monitor his playing time when he comes back initially.
“You are going to see him at first, you are going to see him in right and it’s going to probably look like there is no rhyme or reason, it’s going to be based on what we feel the team needs that day, but we are going to see him as much as possible in both of those positions.”
Third-base coach Glenn Sherlock missed the game to deal with a family matter. Ruben Amaro Jr., moved to the third-base coaching box, with assistant hitting coach Tom Slater in Amaro’s spot at first base.
