PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — New York Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said he’s optimistic shortstop Francisco Lindor will recover for opening day after having surgery on Wednesday to repair a broken hamate bone in his left hand.

Lindor was evaluated by a hand specialist after experiencing soreness in the area around his hand and wrist this week.

“People are saying six weeks for return of play,” Mendoza said, referencing a timeline that could threaten Lindor’s status for the start of the season.

“Knowing Lindor, I’m not gonna bet against him. This is a guy that’s played through broken toes and the low back (injury) two years ago when he barely walked and he continued to play through it. So we’re still optimistic that he’s going to be available for us on opening day, but we’ve just got to wait and see.”

Lindor is the third prominent player to suffer hamate bone injuries in the opening week of spring training, following Arizona outfielder Corbin Carroll and Baltimore second baseman Jackson Holliday.

When asked about the sudden rash of hamate injuries, Mendoza said: “It’s baseball, you know. I guess it’s back to baseball season. … This is a pretty common one. It’s just rare that, you know, in the span of, what 24 hours, we got three really good players going down with the same injury. But I don’t make too much out of it.”

Lindor, 32, hit .267 with 31 homers, 86 RBIs and 31 steals in 160 games with New York last year. The five-time All-Star was left off Puerto Rico’s roster for the upcoming World Baseball Classic over insurance coverage.

Carroll out

Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll will miss the World Baseball Classic after breaking the hamate bone in his right hand during batting practice, a person with knowledge of the injury told The Associated Press.

Carroll will have surgery today and miss significant time during spring training, according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the injury has not been announced by the team.

It is not known if Carroll, 25, will return in time for opening day. He had been expected to play for Team USA in the WBC.

Carroll was the National League Rookie of the Year in 2023. He hit .259 with 31 home runs and stole 32 bases last season. He led the majors with 17 triples.

No Holliday in Baltimore

SARASOTA, Fla. — Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday will have surgery on Thursday to repair a broken hamate bone in his right hand and will miss opening day.

Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias announced Wednesday that Holliday sustained the injury while taking batting practice last week.

Holliday, 22, hit .242 with 17 home runs, 55 RBIs and 17 stolen bases in 2025. He was the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2022.

Back in Texas

Pitcher Jordan Montgomery has agreed on a one-year deal to rejoin the Texas Rangers, three seasons after being part of their only World Series championship and while the left-hander continues rehabbing from a second elbow reconstruction surgery.

Montgomery has played for Arizona and Milwaukee sporadically the past two seasons while dealing with arm injuries.

In eight MLB seasons, he is 46-41 with a 4.03 earned-runaveraged.