Jake McCarthy hits inside-the-parker vs. Pirates

Winn is clearly feeling better and appears to have managed to talk his way into the lineup following a one-game absence due to left thumb soreness. His return pushes rookie standout JJ Wetherholt back to the keystone with Bryan Torres retreating to the bench.

Swanson’s first home run was a three-run blast off Nolan McLean in the sixth that broke a 3-3 tie, and then he hit a grand slam off Jonathan Pintaro in the eighth inning to give him 11 home runs and 42 RBI on the season. It has not been a great season for Swanson, who is still hitting just .194/.298/.372 on the year, but he’s had a tremendous five-game stretch, going 8-for-18 with four home runs, 14 RBI, seven runs scored, and three steals. Maybe fantasy managers should wait until after the Mets series ends and see if there is any trade interest in their respective leagues.

Remember when Busch hit .193 with two home runs in 30 games in March and April? Since May 1st, Busch is hitting .279/.424/.467 with seven home runs, 18 runs scored, 33 RBI, and two steals in 48 games. He should be treated as the top 10 starting first baseman he was drafted to be before the season began.

Lindor returns to New York’s lineup for the second game of Wednesday’s doubleheader against the Cubs at Citi Field. It’s his first game action since April 22. The 32-year-old wound up missing exactly nine weeks recovering from a calf strain. His return provides an immediate injection of life for a Mets lineup that ranks 25th in runs scored this season.

Alvarez got to Javier Assad for his seventh home run of the season. Since coming off the injured list in early June, Alvarez has gone 14-for-43 (.326) with three home runs, seven RBI, and four runs scored in 12 games with a 13/3 K/BB ratio. While the Mets offense aren’t him hasn’t helped with the counting stats, Alvarez deserves to be on rosters in shallow one-catcher leagues.

There simply isn’t a spot for Mauricio on New York’s overcrowded big-league roster at the moment. The 25-year-old former top prospect will remain stationed on the doorstep of the majors until injury or ineffectiveness provide him with an extended shot. He hit the injured list with a fractured thumb back in early May.

Assad walked two and struck out five while throwing 64 percent of his pitches for strikes. He collected a 10 percent swinging strike rate and 27 percent CSW in what was a decidedly average performance. He commanded the zone well with his sinker and four-seamer, and he did have good vertical movement on the four-seamer today, which got him whiffs at the top of the zone. He struggled to command the cutter, and none of his other pitches were overly impactful. Assad should remain in the rotation with both Ben Brown (neck) and Edward Cabrera (hamstring) on the injured list, but he remains just a deep league streamer and a risky play against the Padres next week.

Short loses his spot on New York’s active roster with superstar Francisco Lindor returning from the injured list. The 31-year-old went 1-for-8 at the dish across three games for the Mets after being claimed off waivers from the Tigers last week.

McLean threw four scoreless innings to start the game and then struck out the first two hitters of the fifth inning before he allowed a single to Pete Crow-Armstrong, a double to Michael Conforto, and a homer to Michael Busch. In the fifth inning, he allowed a one-out double to Nico Hoerner, an infield single to Miguel Amaya, and then another two-out home run to Dansby Swanson. On the day, McLean struck out nine, walked two, and posted an impressive 18 percent swinging strike rate and 36 percent CSW. He didn’t have great command of the four-seamer and sweeper, and a few poorly spotted pitches came back to bite him. He’ll face the Blue Jays on the road next.

There is no timetable yet for Cabrera to return after undergoing an MRI that revealed a rather significant hamstring strain. The 28-year-old starter hit the injured list earlier on Wednesday after suffering the injury during Tuesday night’s start against the Mets. His extended absence is another hit to Chicago’s perilously-thin rotation depth. It sounds like fantasy managers shouldn’t expect him back until some point in August.