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The New York Mets are making efforts to keep Luis Robert healthy this season.
The New York Mets executed a trade for oft-injured Luis Robert Jr. this offseason, and while the outfielder has missed plenty of time in his career, the club has a plan in place to try to keep its $20 million asset on the field.
The Mets are slated to begin their MLB Spring Training schedule on Saturday, February 21, but Robert will not be on the field with them. New York plans to hold Robert out of exhibition games for the time being, manager Carlos Mendoza told reporters.
“We’re going to be proactive, so I’ll throw that out there. He won’t be playing in games out of the gate,” Mendoza said, relayed by Alex Smith of SNY. “This is something that, when we traded for him, our trainers put their hands on him and identified some of the things, especially in the lower half, that needed to be straightened out.”
New York Mets Taking Steps to Help Luis Robert Jr. Avoid Injury
Persistent health concerns have limited Robert for much of his career, including the past two seasons. He averaged just 105 games played in 2024 and 2025 with the Chicago White Sox. Robert has topped 450 plate appearances just once since he debuted in 2020.
Robert’s injuries have come below the waist in recent years, hence Mendoza’s reference to the lower half being the focus for trainers. The outfielder hit the IL late in the 2023 campaign with a left MCL sprain. In 2024, a right hip flexor strain cost him roughly two months.
The hamstring became a recurring problem this past season. Robert nearly made it through June without any issues, but went down with a left hamstring strain a couple of weeks before the All-Star break. He only spent a minimum stint on the IL the first time. In late August, Robert strained the same hamstring. The recurrence of the injury would ultimately end his season.
What Would A Healthy Luis Robert Season Look Like?
It’s been a few years, but White Sox fans got a glimpse of Robert’s upside in 2023. The outfielder launched 38 home runs and stole 20 bases. He earned his only career All-Star selection. Robert won the Silver Slugger award and finished 12th in American League MVP voting. Perhaps most importantly, Robert stayed on the field for a career-high 145 games.
The raw tools are easy to see for Robert. He ranked in the 92nd percentile for bat speed last season. Statcast’s Outs Above Average fielding metric put him in the 93rd percentile. Robert finished in the 90th percentile for sprint speed. He had one of the top 25 hardest-hit balls of the 2025 campaign.
Injuries have held Robert back, but making consistent contact is also becoming an issue. The outfielder posted a 80.9% zone contact rate last season, his lowest since his rookie year. Robert’s 31.7% whiff rate ranked in the ninth percentile in 2025. His 26% strikeout rate was actually his best mark since 2022, but that’s still well above league average. Putting the bat on the ball is only going to get more difficult as Robert gets deeper into his career.
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