New York Mets infielder Wilmer Flores sustained a broken left ankle in November while being hit by a pitch during a winter league game in Venezuela.
No surgery is needed and Flores is expected to be recovered in time for spring training, Mets assistant general manager John Ricco said Tuesday at baseball’s winter meetings.
Flores took a pitch off the ankle in his season debut in his home country. After sitting out several days, he tried to return but played in just three games before he was shut down for the remainder of the winter.
The Mets thought the ankle was bruised but discovered Tuesday that Flores had a non-displaced fracture.
In Flores’ first full season in the major leagues in 2015, he batted .263 with 16 home runs and 59 RBIs. Flores might be best remembered last season for crying at shortstop during a game in Citi Field after he thought the Mets had traded him to the Milwaukee Brewers.