During his early days in Cleveland, Francisco Lindor was surrounded by leaders. Michael Brantley, Andrew Miller, Rajai Davis and Michael Bourn are just a few of the names the New York Mets shortstop looked up to as he got his feet wet in the majors.
A decade after making his MLB debut, the 31-year-old Lindor is a superstar in New York and a leader in the same mold as those players he learned from early on in his career.
Now in his fifth season with the Mets, Lindor is being pointed to by fans to be the franchise’s next captain. No announcement has been made, but there is a belief that the decision to give Lindor the “C” is only a matter of time, especially following the franchise recently retiring the number of their last captain, David Wright.
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Getting the captaincy would be an “honor” and “a privilege,” Lindor told Yahoo Sports. It would be something that he would embrace.
“I wouldn’t do [anything] different,” said Lindor, who was promoting Miracle Treat Day at DQ on July 31, which will see Dairy Queen donate $1 or more per Blizzard purchase to Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals to benefit local children’s hospitals. “I would continue to be myself. That’s something I wouldn’t take lightly, something that would come with a great honor. It’s about continuing to live up to the standard that the guys like David Wright, John Franco, Keith [Hernandez] had set.”
We spoke to Lindor recently about the Mets’ franchise shift under Steve Cohen, Juan Soto’s influence and working through a rough patch.
Q. Steve Cohen bought the team not long before you came to New York. In that time the team has become a playoff team, a contending team. What have you seen that’s changed in that clubhouse that’s transformed the roster into what it’s become now?
LINDOR: “Just the standard and there’s a belief. Expectations are there every year. There’s a belief that we’re going to get it done and there’s a standard that we have to play the game the right way. That’s what it really all comes down to.”
Q. Sometimes adding a big-name player doesn’t always work out, but Juan Soto is obviously a different type of player. What has his addition to your clubhouse and in your lineup done to better the 2025 Mets vs. the 2024 Mets?
LINDOR: “Every time he comes up [to bat], you know he will give you the best every single time. With that being said, it’s just how he controls the at-bat. Hitting’s contagious so watching a guy like that, you learn and you move forward and we all play for each other.”
Q. In your career, how have you tried to overcome a rough patch during the season? Are you looking at more video? Maybe trying to make tweaks at the plate or keep things the same and work through it?
LINDOR: “You always try to find ways to continue to get better. The routines are the same because you know the routines from the work. But along those lines, you always try to find different ways to continue to improve. You don’t want to get stale. Through tough times you just rely on the process. If the process is there the results will eventually come.”
Q. Following next year’s WBC, there’s talk that the union and league may agree to allow players to take part in the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. What would it mean for you to represent Puerto Rico in the Olympics.
LINDOR: “It would be fantastic. It would be a dream, but we’ll see. It will be in the middle of the summer. I don’t know how that is going to work out.”
