Mets put Robinson Cano back on IL with lingering left quad issue

After not even making it through one game unscathed, Robinson Cano has gone right back on the IL with a lingering left quad issue.

Robinson Cano came off the injured list this past Wednesday, then promptly felt tightness in his injured left quad and left that night’s game against the San Francisco Giants early. After apparently trying to avoid doing it for a few days, on Sunday the New York Mets placed Cano back on the 10-day IL (retroactive to June 6).

According to Tim Healey of Newsday, Cano will start a rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse or Double-A Binghamton on Tuesday. Cano has framed his return to the IL as more about getting at-bats than anything, in order to ease back into action since he has barely played since before Memorial Day. A quick jump to a rehab assignment seems to back up that the aggravation is not a huge concern.

Cano drew some criticism for not hustling earlier in May, then he (of course) initially injured his quad hustling down the first base line on a ground ball. But independent of the lingering quad issue, he’s not producing to anywhere near his typical level this season (.238/.284/.366 slash-line, three home runs, 14 RBI), as the Mets sit below .500 (31-33 entering Sunday).

The Mets regularly mismanage things, including injuries, and it appears they rushed Cano back. But if he is to be believed, he will only require the minimum stint back on the IL before being ready to return at full strength.

With his downturn in production in mind, it’s worth wondering if Cano has been dealing with some level of this quad issue or another injury virtually all season. His performance-enhancing drug suspension from last year with the Seattle Mariners is also worth noting, for the “he’s not juicing, so no wonder he’s bad now” crowd. In any case a (hopefully) fully healthy Cano has a better chance to produce in line with his history in a week or so, and the Mets will be counting on it.