New York Mets supervisor Carlos Mendoza revealed throughout an look on New York sports activities radio station WFAN final week (h/t SNY’s Robert Sanchez) that he is “had some conversations with” Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns about shortstop Francisco Lindor changing into the fifth crew captain in franchise historical past.
Throughout a current chat with MLB insider Andy Martino of SNY, former Mets captain and longtime nearer John Franco shared why Lindor ought to obtain the respect earlier than the 2025 common season.
“He’s the unofficial captain anyhow,” Franco stated about Lindor. “There’s management with the way in which he presents himself on the sector and off the sector. When he was going dangerous, he had the identical demeanor, the identical strategy. And the way in which he will get to know the youthful gamers and talks to them, nearly like instructing. I see him speaking with the younger guys and hitting, fielding, even the pitching. There are management qualities in the way in which he presents himself.”
The players-only assembly Lindor referred to as on Might 29, the identical night time the 2024 Mets fell to 22-33, has routinely been credited with saving a season that noticed the Amazins full a visit to the Nationwide League Championship Collection. It additionally did not damage that Lindor emerged because the eventual NL MVP runner-up.
Based on ESPN stats, Lindor led the Mets final season (amongst certified gamers) with 618 at-bats, 107 runs scored, 169 hits, 39 doubles, 91 RBI, a .273 batting common and a .344 on-base share. He was second behind solely first baseman Pete Alonso (34) with 33 dwelling runs.
A narrative from this previous July detailed how Lindor and outfielder Brandon Nimmo started paying for crew dinners on street journeys through the membership’s resurgence final season. Based on Martino, Lindor has lately labored to make sure that All-Star outfielder Juan Soto will get “comfy together with his new crew” after Soto left the New York Yankees to signal with the Mets this previous offseason.
“Soto left behind a number of shut relationships with the Yankees, a company that rapidly got here to really feel like dwelling for him,” Martino defined. “Lindor, removed from feeling territorial in regards to the arrival of a brand new celebrity, has gone out of his option to be inclusive.”
The Mets have not had an official captain since beloved third baseman David Wright retired after the 2018 season. With Lindor already serving as Wright’s successor, it appears a given the 31-year-old can have a “C” added to his uniform sooner somewhat than later.
