50,000 Stand to Salute Church
NEW YORK -- As Ryan Church walked through the Mets' clubhouse on Friday afternoon, it marked a return to familiar surroundings.
After a six-game stint in the Minor Leagues as part of his rehabilitation process, as well as more than a month on the disabled list, Church could stand by his own locker. And he knew that the jerseys and pants inside would be just his size. "It's good to be back where they have uniforms that fit," he said.
The Mets activated Church from the disabled list on Friday and optioned catcher Robinson Cancel to Triple-A New Orleans. The outfielder played an integral part in the New York offense in the first half of the season batting .307 with 10 home runs and 36 RBIs before he was sent to the DL on July 8 for the second time with post-concussion syndrome.
"If we get what we had with him the first part of the year, it will be a great addition to our lineup," manager Jerry Manuel said. "A tremendous addition to our lineup and to our defense, as well."
But while the uniforms may match what Church was used to before he was placed on the DL, the team he came back to Friday is markedly different from the team he left. After walking off the field as part of a club that continued to hover around .500, the right fielder rejoins a team that boasts a 71-57 record and a first-place spot atop the National League East standings, entering Friday.
"I'm really excited to get back here," Church said. "We're in a race for the playoffs. Any time you have that situation, it's just an extra boost."
Church returned to the starting spot in right field Friday in the series opener against the Astros, batting seventh. He was given a standing ovation before his first at-bat, which resulted in an infield single. He went 1-for-3 overall.
After he appeared in only nine games between his two stints on the DL, the Mets were cautious about Church's rehab the second time around.
He played in six games with New York's Triple-A, Double-A and Gulf League affiliates. He hit just .105, and Church joked that he sent more bats into the stands than balls out of the park, because of new gloves that left him with a poor grip.
"Statistically, I pretty much blew that," he said. "But the biggest thing for me was going out there every day and making plays, running around, being on the bases, throwing and really testing my legs in the outfield."
Before he was activated, Church completed two nine-inning games with Double-A Binghamton to be sure he was prepared to compete at the big league level. He said the only real difference in his approach will be to keep his hands up higher while running the bases. Church didn't suffer any physical problems during the rehab process, and he said he sensed the progress during his time in the Gulf Coast League.
"After all the hard running I did, there were no setbacks, no dizziness or anything like that," Church said. "And I was kind of like, 'You know what, I think this is the turn right here.' And every day after that, it just got better and better."
The Mets managed to fill the hole left by Church's absence over the past two months, most notably due to the success of Fernando Tatis. But as he prepared to step back onto the field Friday, Church wasn't concerned about fitting back into his role with the team.
"Hopefully I can just fall right into it, jump into the flow of things, just help out," Church said. "It's all going to come. I've just got to be a piece of the puzzle."
Samantha Newman is an associate reporter for MLB.com
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