WASHINGTON (AP) — New York Mets reliever A.J. Minter was put on the 15-day injured list Sunday with a left lat strain, a day after leaving a 2-0 win against the Washington Nationals.
The 31-year-old left-hander was facing James Wood with one out in the eighth inning when he appeared to wince after a 3-1 pitch and walked to the back of the mound. Manager Carlos Mendoza and the team trainer came out and, after a short conversation, Minter left with an athletic trainer.
“Yesterday we went out there and he mentioned triceps,” Mendoza said Sunday morning. “After the game, the trainers checked him out and it seems like it's more of a lat injury. We just don't know the severity of it.”
Minter underwent an MRI Sunday.
New York replaced him on the roster by selecting the contract of right-hander José Ureña from Triple-A Syracuse. Mendoza said Ureña will be available out of the bullpen Sunday,
Minter, 31, is 0-0 with a 1.64 ERA and seven holds in his first season with the Mets. He has struck out 14 batters and walked five in 11 innings.
“I'm just glad it wasn't my elbow,” he said Saturday. “We're looking at probably an IL stint. Just hopefully come back, get this thing fixed and continue to help the team.”
New York also said infielder Ronny Mauricio, recovering from a torn right ACL sustained on Dec. 12, 2023, was starting a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment on Sunday with Class A St. Lucie.
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
New York Mets relief pitcher A.J. Minter throws during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Washington Nationals, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
New York Mets relief pitcher A.J. Minter (33) leaves a baseball game with a trainer during the eighth inning against the Washington Nationals, Saturday, April 26, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)
ISLAMABAD (AP) — Babar Azam has returned to lead Pakistan’s test cricket team after Shan Masood was axed from the role on Sunday.
Masood’s firing seemed inevitable after the team lost 12 of 16 matches during his tenure, which began when he initially replaced Babar in late 2023.
“We wanted to look for a captain who could lead the team in a much better way,” selector Aaqib Javed told media in Lahore. “Shan’s individual performance was good but as captain we weren’t getting the desired results.”
Javed said the selection committee was unanimous in recommending Babar as captain and no other player came up in the discussion.
Pakistan’s results in test matches took a sharp decline since Masood lost 3-0 to Australia in his first series. Pakistan also lost 2-0 to Bangladesh at home for the first time and the only series win under Masood’s captaincy came against England at home when Pakistan won 2-1 as eventually Pakistan finished at bottom of the last World Test Championship points table.
Javed pointed out several shortcomings of the Pakistan team in test matches under Masood’s leadership that included losses against South Africa and the West Indies.
“The captain has a responsibility of finishing the games,” Javed said. “Some things are the responsibility of the team, some are the responsibility of the selectors, and some are the responsibility of the captain. The captain’s responsibility also includes maintaining the team’s over rate, taking DRS decisions and making the right call at the toss.”
Masood had a fair time with the bat during his captaincy as he scored two centuries and seven half centuries, including back-to-back fifties at Melbourne against Australia.
Babar had led Pakistan to 10 wins in 20 tests before Masood was handed the captaincy. Babar's tenure as skipper started with a 2-0 home win over South Africa and Pakistan also went on to clean sweep Bangladesh and Sri Lanka away from home.
As captain, Babar averaged over 50 runs per innings in test cricket and his only blemish came against England when Pakistan lost 3-0 at home.
Babar’s second stint as skipper starts with two-test series in West Indies later this month for which Pakistan named Masood as one of the 16 players. After the West Indies series, Pakistan will play three test matches in England for which Saud Shakeel will be added as a 17th player, subject to fitness.
Left-arm spinner Ali Usman, right-handed batter Awais Zafar, right-arm fast bowler Ubaid Shah and wicketkeeper batter Ghazi Ghori are the uncapped players in the squad.
Squad:
Babar Azam (captain), Aamir Jamal, Abdullah Fazal, Ali Usman, Azan Awais, Imamul Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Ali, Mohammad Rizwan, Awais Zafar, Ghazi Ghori, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Shan Masood, Ubaid Shah.
AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
FILE - Pakistan's cricket team skipper Babar Azam speaks during a press conference regarding up coming Twenty20 series against Ireland, England and T20 World Cup, in Lahore, Pakistan, on May 6, 2024. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary, File)
