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          New York Mets

          Michael Conforto receives cortisone shot for cartilage damage in wrist

          • Adam Rubin, ESPN Staff WriterJun 14, 2016, 06:20 PM ET
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              Adam Rubin has covered the Mets since 2003. He's a graduate of Mepham High School on Long Island and the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He joined ESPNNewYork after spending 10 years at the New York Daily News.
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          NEW YORK -- New York Mets left fielder Michael Conforto received a cortisone injection in his left wrist on Monday after undergoing an MRI at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan. Conforto was diagnosed with strained cartilage.

          Conforto believes he can return to the starting lineup within a few days without requiring surgery now.

          "The plan right now is to take a day or two to let the shot sink in and take effect," Conforto said. "It feels pretty good today."

          Alejandro De Aza starts in left field for a second straight game with Conforto sidelined.

          Manager Terry Collins intended for Juan Lagares to start in the outfield rather than De Aza, but Lagares had a dental issue earlier in the day and is feeling "real sore."

          Asked if he would require surgery down the road to address the damaged cartilage, Conforto said: "I think we're just going to keep an eye on it, see how that goes. They said it could take care of itself -- some of the cartilage floating around in there might just dissolve and it'll take care of itself. I think we're going to keep an eye on it and see what happens in the future. But for now the cortisone shot should make it feel well enough and I'll be ready to go."

          Conforto is hitless in his last 11 at-bats. He is hitting .096 (5-for-52) since May 12.

          "I wasn't really feeling it during games," Conforto said. "I could feel it taking BP, taking practice swings and stuff like that."

          With Conforto's season average having dipped to .233, it was noted to general manager Sandy Alderson on Tuesday that Travis d'Arnaud has benefited in the past from a demotion to Triple-A Las Vegas.

          Asked about the process for making a similar decision with Conforto, Alderson said: "That's sort of a gut feel. There's no perfect answer or formula for when it's right for a player to go down, or when it's right for a player to fight through it. Travis has benefited from going to the minor leagues on occasion to get his swing back. … As far as Michael is concerned, if you remember when we brought him up, one of the reasons we did was because of his approach and his foundation in terms of decision-making at the plate and so forth. And that's probably something that he's struggled with over the last few weeks and something we've got to get back and ... continue to remind him that's how he got here. It wasn't on his hitting prowess as much as the foundation on which his hitting ability is based."