Mets recall OF Michael Conforto, demote rookie Brandon Nimmo

PHILADELPHIA -- Outfielder Michael Conforto is returning to the New York Mets after a 16-game stint with Triple-A Las Vegas.

The Mets announced that Conforto will rejoin the club at Wrigley Field for Monday's series opener against the Chicago Cubs.

Rookie Brandon Nimmo was demoted to the Pacific Coast League after Sunday's 5-0 rubber-game win against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Nimmo hit .235 (12-for-51) with one homer and four RBIs.

Conforto had been in an 8-for-75 rut when he was demoted to Las Vegas on June 25. He hit .344 (21-for-61) with three homers and 15 RBIs during his three-week stint in the minors.

Conforto also was exposed to right field while playing with Las Vegas, making four starts at the position. That is noteworthy because Yoenis Cespedes acknowledged Sunday that he would prefer to exclusively play left field and not see time in center field for the remainder of the season.

Conforto previously has only played left field with the Mets, so Cespedes' preference should have the ripple effect of forcing Conforto to man the other corner spot for some playing time.

Nimmo hopes to primarily play center field, with just dabbling at the corner outfield spots, with Las Vegas.

"I know I have a lot to work on, and I can still do that in Triple-A," Nimmo said after learning of the demotion. "I think right now they feel like Conforto can really help out the team. I think that he can, too. I hope that he's healthy and good to go and can help this team and spur them on to a nice winning streak."

Nimmo added that his first big league experience taught him that he can succeed in the majors.

"I think it's given me some confidence," Nimmo said. "It also helped me realize a dream, and obviously take some stress and pressure off. Coming up here and getting a feel for how it is has let me know that it's the same game, just at a little more consistent pace, but one that I can play at."