The Mets began play with more catchers lost than defeats.

After Travis d’Arnaud was lost to a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow this week, the Mets placed Kevin Plawecki on the disabled list Friday with a hairline fracture in his left hand that will keep him sidelined for three-to-four weeks, minimum, according to the team. Plawecki’s diagnosis was first reported on NYPost.com.

It was later announced that d’Arnaud will undergo Tommy John surgery, ending his season. So the Mets new catching tandem, at least in the short term, will be Tomas Nido and Jose Lobaton, who arrived from Triple-A Las Vegas on Friday.

Plawecki was drilled in the hand by a pitch on Wednesday in Miami and subsequent X-rays were negative. But further testing Thursday, including an MRI exam, revealed the hairline fracture.

“The doctor was very optimistic, and seeing what I saw it was nothing large,” Plawecki said. “It could have been a lot worse.”

Lobaton was in the lineup batting eighth against the Brewers on Friday and went 1-for-4 with a triple. Nido was recalled from Double-A Binghamton on Wednesday and replaced Plawecki in the eighth inning that night.

“As we’ve noted in baseball over the offseason and early in the season, there are some teams that probably aren’t trying that hard,” Alderson said. “So I’m not sure the calendar is even relevant in those cases. So we’ll have to see.”

“I think we’re comfortable for the very short term,” general manager Sandy Alderson said. “We’ll see how things go. But we’re going to be certainly aware of what else may be available. We’ll monitor that market. At this moment, we don’t have any plans to add anyone, other than at the Triple-A level. But that certainly can change.”

Maybe the sexiest name is the Marlins’ J.T. Realmuto, in whom the Mets have shown recent interest, according to an industry source, but who has been on the disabled list with a back contusion. Dealing for Realmuto would be a challenge for the Mets given their lack of significant prospects from which to trade.

But Alderson clearly seems open to trading for a catcher, even at this early juncture of the season.

“As we’ve noted in baseball over the offseason and early in the season, there are some teams that probably aren’t trying that hard,” Alderson said. “So I’m not sure the calendar is even relevant in those cases. So we’ll have to see.”

Other possible targets could include Oakland’s Jonathan Lucroy and Tampa Bay’s Wilson Ramos.

Neither Nido nor Lobaton is much of an offensive presence. Nido swings right-handed and Lobaton lefty, which could lead to a platoon. Nido is well-regarded for his defense, but Lobaton brings a veteran presence behind the plate.

“It’s hard to say how much playing time either one of them is going to get,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “I think we are going to take the same approach and try to get the most out of our players and play them when it makes sense to play them.

The good thing is they are both really good defensively, they both can throw and one is right-handed and one is left-handed.”

The 29-year-old d’Arnaud, who may have played his final game with the Mets, has been on the disabled list in each of the past five seasons. By pairing d’Arnaud with Plawecki behind the plate this season, team officials hoped to maximize productivity and health from both.

“It’s really tough, with this great championship atmosphere and great group of guys,” d’Arnaud said, referring to his season-ending surgery.

“It’s really tough with this great championship atmosphere and great group of guys.”

Plawecki hasn’t lost hope his window of opportunity to show he can be an everyday catcher will stay be there when he returns.

“It’s only a couple of weeks in a long season,” Plawecki said.