The New York Mets have been among the strongest teams in the National League throughout the month of April, but manager Carlos Mendoza knows that it's a long season and there are many things that can derail a season. One of those factors is a team's overall health, and specifically the ability of the pitching staff to avoid injuries. The Mets received a blow in that area Sunday when they placed reliever A.J. Minter on the 15-day Injured List.

Minter suffered the injury Saturday in New York's 2-0 victory over the Washington Nationals. The reliever had been called on by Mendoza to pitch thee eighth inning, and after getting the first out of the stanza, he appeared to suffer a breakdown while James Wood was at the plate. After the count went to 3-1, Minter left the mound and winced.

Mendoza came out of the Mets dugout along with the team's trainer to discuss the pitcher's discomfort. Minter departed shortly thereafter with what was eventually described as a triceps injury.

Minter explained what he felt at the time he came out of the game. “About two pitches or a pitch before you can kind of see me kind of move my triceps around a little bit. It tightened up,” Minter said, per the Associated Press. “I threw that last pitch, a cutter, and I felt my triceps. Don't know how long we're looking at, getting imaging tomorrow and see where we're at. But yes, triceps and we'll see what the damage is tomorrow.”

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Mets have been rolling

The Mets have been playing sensational baseball, but they suffered their worst defeat of the season Sunday against the Nationals. They built a 7-1 lead through five inning, but the Nationals took advantage of the Mets bullpen in the late innings. They scored five runs in the seventh inning to get close and two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to emerge with an 8-7 victory. Washington's winning run scored on first baseman Pete Alonso's throwing error.

If the Mets are able to put that loss behind them, they appear to be in excellent shape. Their 19-9 record has given them a 4.5-game lead over the second-place Philadelphia Phillies. They conclude their series with the Nationals Monday afternoon before returning home for a three-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Mets are an eye-opening 12-1 at Citi Field this season.