Mets activate Kevin Plawecki from disabled list, option Tomas Nido to Triple-A

The Mets have activated Kevin Plawecki from the disabled list after he missed about six-and-a-half weeks with a broken left hand. To make room for him, the team has optioned Tomas Nido to Triple-A Las Vegas.

When Plawecki was placed on the disabled list the same day that the Mets announced that Travis d’Arnaud would be having season-ending Tommy John surgery, the initial prognosis was that he would miss roughly three-to-four weeks. In early May, however, Plawecki’s grip strength had yet to return, and he was still experiencing pain in the hand, which delayed his rehab timeline. Plawecki finally did begin rehab games in Las Vegas last week, when he went 1-for-3 with a home run on Wednesday and caught seven innings the following night.

Before the acquisition of Devin Mesoraco for Matt Harvey about a week after Plawecki experienced his setback, the Mets had been using a combination of Jose Lobaton and Tomas Nido behind the plate and getting virtually no offensive production from the catching position. This improved upon the addition of Mesoraco to the roster, who currently holds a 110 wRC+ for the year and a 143 wRC+ since joining the Mets. Although Plawecki had yet to find his stride at the plate before going down, the tandem of Plawecki and Mesoraco represents a significant upgrade over what the Mets have had most of the year.