Laura Albanese: Mets' Francisco Lindor has earned the right to try to climb his way back
Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor looks on after he flied out to end the third inning against the Boston Red Sox in an MLB baseball game at Citi Field on July 10, 2026. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
PHILADELPHIA — There likely is no one more frustrated with Francisco Lindor right now than Francisco Lindor himself.
He was on the forefront of last year’s collapse, often tasked to answer what felt like unanswerable questions — why is this happening and what can the Mets do to stop it?
Though every year is an opportunity for a fresh start, this season’s ills provided no respite. He arrived in Port St. Lucie with fans and pundits wondering about his relationship with Juan Soto, and he needed hamate surgery that cost him almost all of spring training.
Then, while navigating the sort of slow start that typically comes with that type of medical intervention, he suffered a calf strain that cost him more than two months. He’s been back for 17 games, and a sixth-inning blunder in the Mets’ 6-1 loss to the Phillies on Saturday was his fifth error in that span.
“I usually say it’s an uphill fight — every year I say that,” he said. “But [this year] is a real challenge for sure. I’m looking forward to continuing this journey. It’s been a high mountain that’s in front of me, but at the end of the day, I will climb it. I will get better and I will be to the standard that I expect of myself and that everyone has for me.”
Lindor’s average dropped to a career-low .205 after Saturday’s 0-for-4 and suddenly, the man fans once deemed the team’s unofficial captain has fallen out of favor.
With the Aug. 3 trade deadline on the horizon, many have wondered if the Mets will try to move Lindor, and if they will be able to do it despite his large contract and his no-trade clause.
But that is a kneejerk reaction to a bad season in what could very well be a Hall of Fame-caliber career. And Lindor has earned the right to at least try to fix this.
At 32, it’s unlikely he’s in the midst of a full physical decline. What’s more believable is interim manager Andy Green’s assessment of Lindor’s play, and that of the rest of his defense, which committed three errors Saturday and is among one of the worst-fielding teams in baseball.
“If you start to think about mistakes, they tend to happen more frequently,” Green said. “He’s a guy that we believe in and we will continue to believe in. He’s got a long track record of being one of the absolute best shortstops in baseball and [we] have confidence that he will be that before the season is out.”
Lindor, who tries to play all 162 games each season, was asked if the time on the injured list affected his defensive rhythm. You hear of that when it comes to hitting, but less so when it comes to fielding.
“I never really thought about it, but there have been some plays that got a little fast,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s missing time or if it’s just that I’ve got to be better.”
You certainly saw evidence of that Saturday — and evidence, too, that this has exacted a mental tax on the five-time All-Star.
With runners on first and second and one out in the sixth, Alec Bohm flied out to deep center and slow-footed Kyle Schwarber tagged up and tried to advance to third. He seemed likely to be out before Lindor rocketed the throw far to Bo Bichette’s right, allowing both runners to advance safely.
After the play, Lindor was barking into the air — a vortex of frustration and anger that has been close to bubbling over for weeks now.
It wasn’t even the first time that afternoon that he’d made his displeasure visible. In the second, he walked back to the dugout muttering after striking out for the second time.
“That was a mental mistake today,” Lindor said of the error. “For me, defense is the most important thing, and it’s not been good — not been good at all.”
Still, going into Saturday, Lindor was one of only three players on the roster who have played above-average defense. He, Carson Benge and Jared Young lead the team with one out above average. That is nowhere near Lindor’s standard, though: He was at 15 outs above average in 2024 and five last year.
But one down year does not a career make. And the unsubstantiated narratives about Lindor’s perceived deficiencies as a leader are simply that — unsubstantiated — and certainly not enough to think he can’t be an integral part of this team’s future success.
We’ve too quickly forgotten about the player who hit the NLCS-clinching grand slam against the very Phillies team the Mets were facing Saturday, or the one who played with a broken toe and despite a balky back, or declined to take paternity leave so he could more quickly return to his team.
“You have to take the mentality that you’re going to score, that you’re going to make plays, that you’re going to defend the field,” Green said. “I think a little bit of a mentality shift is a positive thing in that setting.”
It’s becoming increasingly clear that this type of shift is what Lindor needs. It’s far from impossible, and it’s simply too soon to give up on him.
Laura Albanese is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. She's been covering MLB since 2014 after starting at Newsday as an intern seven years earlier.
