The New York Mets rode shortstop Francisco Lindor to a surprising 3-2 win over Milwaukee in ten innings.
New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor has had an erratic, up-and-down season, and last night he gave the Mets the full spectrum of The Lindor Experience in New York’s 3-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
It started with an early solo homer that tied the game at 1-1 in a tight pitcher’s duel, which was a reminder that Lindor has been quietly productive of late. He has a .901 OPS over his last 33 games, according to Andrew DiComo of MLB.com, and he’s raised his season total from .639 to .756.
“He’s playing really well -- has for a considerable period of time now,” said interim manager Andy Green. “It was a really tough season to get on track for him and get the ball rolling in the right direction. … But once he got to playing baseball consistently, he’s been great. One of the best players in the game.”
Lindor also showed out defensively, especially in the ninth inning, when he dove to snag a line drive from David Hamilton that would have scored two runs in a 2-2 game and put it away for Milwaukee. It was a remarkable play in what’s been a poor defensive season for Lindor, as he’s ranked 22nd in fielding percentage among shortstops who’ve played at least 500 innings at the position.
Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy was on the wrong end of Lindor’s 2-for-4 night, and he noted the correlation between Lindor playing well and the Mets doing the same.
“I’ve seen Lindor play,” Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. “That’s why this team is playing so well, because he’s playing good, too. He’s a great player, so anytime he’s near the ball I think there’s a chance that some way, he can catch it.”
The flip side of the Lindor experience happened in the bottom of the same inning in which he made the great defensive play. He singled with two outs to start a possible rally, then quickly got himself picked off by Trevor Megill despite having a two-step lead, although replay revealed that Megill’s move might have featured an uncalled balk as he bent his lead leg toward the plate before throwing over to nail Lindor.
Nonetheless, it was one of those bonehead plays that make Lindor so polarizing and exasperating at times. He’s still a productive player who has games where he’s a star, though, and the Mets would welcome more similar efforts as they try to sort out their roster going forward and build momentum for next year.
