Neil Walker leaves Mets game with lower back tightness

Neil Walker started today's game for the Mets at second base, but he came out of it in in the middle of the fourth inning with lower back tightness. Though it seemed possible at the time that Walker might be feeling the effects of the hard ground ball he took to the chest the other night, that wasn't the case. The recently re-acquired Kelly Johnson took over for Walker.

Walker has been great for the Mets so far this year. in 228 plate appearances, he's hit .274/.346/.483 with 13 home runs and a 127 wRC+. A switch-hitter, he's also been much better than expected from the right side of the plate.

In the event that Walker needs to miss any time, the Mets have Dilson Herrera available to them in Triple-A Las Vegas. The 22-year-old has hit .299/.342/.525 with ten home runs for the 51s. Those numbers should be taken in the context of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, but Herrera held his own in his time with the Mets over the past two years.