NEW YORK – Francisco Lindor walked into the Mets clubhouse on Monday afternoon as cold as ever.
Dressed smartly in a blue turtleneck, black rag-rag and Oakley shades, the Mets body slipped across the room toward his locker. Along the way, the ever-present star greeted almost everyone in her path. A hug from a colleague, a pleasantry from a media relations worker, a friendly smile here, a nod there.
One day after repeated discomforts forced him out of a key game, Lindor looked normal: easy, free, effortless. There were no clear signs that the hopes of the franchise and fan base rested on his aching body. He was as unmoved as the player who, a few hours earlier, was praying in his car for his exciting 2024 campaign to continue.
“I was praying when I went in for the MRI and the CT scan that it would be a daily thing, and the good lord answered my prayers,” Lindor told Yahoo Sports and other media outlets. gathered during the short session on Monday afternoon.
Lindor indicated he could start practicing on Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on how he feels. The switch-hitting shortstop is enjoying the most offensive season of his career, with 31 homers, 27 steals, an .836 OPS and impressive defense at shortstop. He is a near lock to finish in the top two of the NL MVP polls along with Dodgers dynamo Shohei Ohtani.
But as the Mets’ topsy-turvy season races to its dramatic end, Lindor’s back has become the primary player. First, it kept Lindor out of Saturday’s starting lineup for the second time this season. A day later, he tried to play with the pain. Lindor went two innings before exiting.
Clinging to the last NL wild card, the Mets lost both games to Philadelphia in gut-wrenching fashion. Their best player and opinion leader watched it all unfold from the dugout.
The Mets woke up Monday morning tied with Atlanta for the playoffs and fearing the worst: that the team’s best player might not play again this season.
But then the team and the player got some good news. An MRI revealed no structural damage. Lindor won’t need a trip to the injured list; His aching back won’t even need a cortisone shot, rest and pills.
Lindor admitted that he resigned after the athletic trainers told him there was nothing wrong.
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On Monday night, the Mets played without Lindor. However, they won, outscoring the Nationals 2-1 in 10 innings. Meanwhile in Atlanta, the Braves were swept by the Dodgers. The Mets, without their most valuable piece, have moved into the NL wild card lead by one game.
José Iglesias, a 34-year-old freshman in Triple-A, made the shortstop in Lindor’s place. The veteran singer has become a cult hero in Queens since his Latin song “OMG” became the group’s viral hit. He gave up a one-run home run in the eighth inning.
Two frames later, Starling Marte, whose season was limited by injuries, ripped a line drive down the left field line. Harrison Bader hit a home run to score the game-winning run as the Mets took the field to harass Marte. Lindor kept himself out of contention. A trademark smile was plastered on his face, the sickly corpse hovering above the first place. As his teammates walked back to the dugout, Lindor greeted them one by one, just as he had done earlier in the day.
It was another improbable win in a Mets season full of them.
Last year, this franchise started the season with the biggest salary in MLB history and postseason prospects. Instead, the 2023 Mets floundered, finishing the year with just 75 wins. That led to many changes over the winter: a new front office led by former Brewers manager David Stearns and a new manager for former Yankees bench coach Carlos Mendoza. But the Mets and deep-pocketed owner Steve Cohen didn’t spend much money on the free agent market, as Stearns chose to upgrade the roster.
And for the first two months of 2024, it felt like the same old Mets. The losses piled up, the reliever threw his glove on the field, the pitchers were underperforming, the fans were disappointed. A mid-June blowout brought the Mets back into contention, but it wasn’t enough to convince Stearns and Co. While other NL wild-card contenders such as the Cardinals and Padres made headline-making deals, the Mets opted to upgrade the roster, adding a handful of relievers and a pinch hitter. ‘yet Jesse Winker.
However the team continued to win. The Mets hit nine in a row in early September. The gap to an underperforming Atlanta team narrowed, then evaporated.
The season may come down to a big three-game series against the Braves next week in Atlanta. New York has a strong schedule remaining, with two more games against the Nats, four against the Phillies, three in Atlanta and three in Milwaukee. Atlanta has close minnows in Cincinnati and Miami before ending the season against a disappointing Royals team.
So here the Mets are, with 12 games to go, with a playoff spot full of that dangerous, intoxicating substance called hope. Soon, they will have Francisco Lindor back in the cage.
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