What a day for Francisco Lindor!
The Mets shortstop had his best game of the year, reaching base five times in a win in Philly
What’s Up with the Mets? ⚾️
The Mets beat the Phillies by a score of 6-1 at Citizens Bank Park on Sunday afternoon (box)
Francisco Lindor reached base five times - he homered, doubled, singled and walked twice, easily putting up his best game of the year
Nolan McLean dazzled on the mound, spinning a two hitter with ten strikeouts over six innings
The Mets 1-5 in the order went a combined 10-for-22 with three runs scored and five RBI on the day
Play of the Game ✨
Francisco Lindor’s two-run home run in the first inning on Sunday set the tone for the Mets and was easily the play of the game. He would reach base four more times on the afternoon with a double, single, and two walks.
The Just Mets Podcast 🎙️
In the latest edition of the Just Mets Podcast, Rich MacLeod recaps a successful weekend for the Mets in Philadelphia, and discusses the trade discourse surrounding Francisco Lindor.
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Down on the Farm 🌾
INF Christian Arroyo (AAA): 1-for-4, HR, RBI
INF Nick Lorusso (AA): 2-for-4, R
OF Trey Snyder (Low-A): 4-for-5, HR, 5 RBI, 2 R
BOX SCORES
Single-A SLU | High-A BRK G1 G2 | Double-A BNG | Triple-A SYR
Today’s Game 🗓
Match-up: Mets (42-58) at Brewers (62-37)
Where: American Family Field - Milwaukee, WI
Starters: RHP Freddy Peralta (5-8, 4.66 ERA) vs. RHP Jacob Misiorowski (10-4, 1.62 ERA)
When: 7:40 PM EDT
Where to Watch: SNY
The Nolan McLean experience, and Francisco Lindor’s best day of 2026 ✍️
For a day anyway, or arguably a weekend, things went generally well for the Mets.
It wasn’t perfect by any means. Saturday was a mess for the Mets on the mound, as has been the case for most of the season, but I’d venture to say Sunday’s game in particular might’ve been among the best days of the year for the club.
To be fair, Sunday’s game was a total punt by the Phillies as they prep for the Dodgers this week, but wins are wins, and for the Mets, they’re so precious that it doesn’t really matter what the Phillies were doing.
The Mets got a splendid effort on the mound from Nolan McLean, who appears to have righted his ship after a bumpy start to the year. I, for one, was willing to be very patient with McLean out of the gate. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be easy for him, or as easy as it seemed to be for him in the eight starts he made for the Mets at the end of the 2025 season. This league has proven time and time again that it doesn’t matter how talented a player is - everyone’s weaknesses will be exposed and exploited. It was up to McLean to figure out how to adjust back, get creative, and find more ways to get hitters out.
Needless to say, he’s done that.
He has leaned less on his sweeper than he did at the end of last season. He struggled to control that pitch and get the opposition to offer at it at times. It has so much movement, but if he was even one inch off on the pitch, it goes from being one of the most dominant pitches in the league to something that wasn’t really competitive for him. Instead, he is using his curveball and sinker a lot more, and while he has about as much deceptive movement on those pitches as he does with his sweeper, he just seems to be able to command the corners more with those pitches than he can the sweeper at the moment, and it’s an effective and dynamic combination for him at this stage of his season.
It will be interesting to see how he stacks up against the Dodgers next weekend at Citi Field. It’s a good test for him, a good test for the Dodgers, and a good overall measurement of where he stands. Statistically speaking, McLean has been one of the best pitchers in the National League over the last five weeks or so, to the tune of a 2.11 ERA over his last eight starts, and that’s with an ineffective outing against the Cubs in June.
If he continues on this roll, McLean will most definitely re-enter the conversation for the National League Rookie of the Year Award. He still might have an uphill battle to win against the likes of JJ Wetherholt, but he’s got the best fWAR among National League rookie pitchers and has the second-best fWAR among all National League rookies behind Wetherholt. But, there’s still 2 1/2 months left in the race, and all signs are pointing up for McLean at the moment, which is fun to see in the midst of a terrible season for the team.
Then there’s Francisco Lindor.
A lot has been made of his lost season, whether or not he is a diminished player, and whether or not the Mets should trade him this summer. I should remind everyone who reads this newsletter that this guy suffered a break to his hamate bone in February, required surgery, basically skipped Spring Training, then missed two months with a calf injury.
He hasn’t really had any normalcy to this season. He has spent the bulk of it rehabbing from injuries, trying to be in game shape, and doing it in a rushed manner that is unconventional for any player in the league.
I am not saying anyone should give him a break. He makes $34 million a year. But, maybe consider cutting him some amount of slack.
He had his best game of the year on Sunday, and looked like Francisco Lindor for the first time all season. I am not saying one day is any indication that he’s going to look like the player of old, but it’s certainly an indication that he probably isn’t a diminished player. And, if you’re one who relies on the metrics, those say he isn’t diminished, either.
Look - I am not saying Lindor’s best days are in front of him. They probably aren’t. We all knew when he signed this contract five years ago that the front five might look a lot better than the back five. He is inevitably going to regress and decline, he is inevitably going to become more injury-prone, and if anything, this season is a signal of the latter.
But, I think we need to see more of the healthy version of Lindor on the other side of age-32 before we draw any conclusions about whether or not he is fading. 166 fragmented at-bats that have been scattered over three months is an unfair sample size to draw a conclusion on. Sure, he hasn’t played well at shortstop either, but let’s be a little more patient before we send the guy packing.
Besides, who is going to replace Lindor if they trade him? Most people forget to consider the alternative, which is non-existent. They have nothing behind him in the minors - they traded Jett Williams and Luisangel Acuña, and neither were going to replace Lindor’s talent, anyway. There’s nobody to sign in free agency - most teams lock their young, quality shortstops up and protect them from walking in their prime years. And there’s no realistic trade option for them either.
Also - Lindor has 10-5 rights (ten years in the league, five years with the same team), meaning he has full no-trade protection. He can stay in New York if he wants to, regardless of whether or not they find a taker and actual value in a trade scenario, that which they would undoubtedly be getting pennies on the dollar for in a deal.
Lastly, a friendly reminder that Lindor has the sixth-highest fWAR in the game since 2021. Among qualified shortstops, he has the second-highest.
So, again, before you run this guy out of town, keep in mind all of the particulars and the alternatives, and lack thereof.
Around the League 🚩
The Red Sox extended their winning streak to 13 games with a 6-1 win over the Rays, their first such streak since 1948
The Padres put up 11 runs combined in the eighth and ninth innings as they smoked the Royals 19-2
Paul Skenes allowed a run over seven innings in the Pirates 7-1 win over the Guardians
Down 7-0, the Diamondbacks rallied past the Cardinals for an 8-7 win in the 10th inning
Michael - you know I admire you guys at Just Mets. But I have a suggestion I hope will be taken seriously and with kindness. Please have someone read your post before you submit. You used the prhase "I am not saying" three times in the space of about five sentences.
What do you mean the Phils "totally punted" the game? Their starter apparently is in the mix for the last spot in the rotation, ok. That's part of baseball, not much of a punt. Did they rest their best position players? No. Please tell us how the Phils totally punted.