Francisco Lindor

Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports

There were high expectations for Francisco Lindor after he was acquired by the New York Mets during the 2020-21 offseason, and in the 2022 season, those expectations were met.

Lindor came over to the Mets along with Carlos Carrasco in a trade that sent Amed Rosario, Andrés Giménez, Josh Wolf, and Isaiah Greene to Cleveland. Before the start of the 2021 regular season, the Mets were able to sign Lindor to a 10-year, $341 million contract extension to keep the four-time All-Star and two-time Silver Slugger in Queens for the foreseeable future.

The cost to bring Lindor to New York and keep him there was not cheap, and therefore the expectations for the shortstop were high. So, when he finished the season batting .230/.322/.412 with 73 runs scored, 20 home runs, 63 RBIs, and 10 stolen bases in 524 at bats, fans were less than impressed. While he still played solid defense and his overall 2021 season production was still worth 3.0 bWAR and 4.2 fWAR, the fact of the matter was that he put together one of his worst seasons during the first year with the Mets.

As the calendar flipped to 2022, all eyes were on Lindor in his sophomore year with the Mets. Would he continue his struggles from 2021, or would he bounce back to the player the Mets thought they were getting when they went all-in on him prior to last season? The answer to that question is the latter.

Lindor finished the 2022 regular season batting .270/.339/.449 with 98 runs scored, 26 home runs, a career-high 107 RBIs (most ever by a Mets shortstop), and 16 stolen bases in 630 at bats. He played in all but one game the entire season and provided the Mets with 5.4 bWAR and 6.8 fWAR.

“He’s been a rock,” said Buck Showalter regarding Lindor. “You look at teams that have had good years. They have one thing in common. People have to post up. People that play shortstop and play first base and drive in a 100-plus runs. You can’t drive in 100 runs if you’re not able to be the type of player he is.”

Lindor’s 2022 season was among the best-ever by a Mets shortstop. The best season by a Mets shortstop came in 2006 when Jose Reyes hit .300/.354/.487 with 122 runs scored, 17 triples, 19 home runs, 81 RBIs, and 64 stolen bases in 647 at bats. Reyes posted a 5.9 bWAR and 5.7 fWAR in 2006 which puts Lindor’s 2022 season in conversation as potentially being the best ever for a Mets shortstop.

Lindor has nine years ahead of him in New York, and after a rocky first season, he has given the Mets fans much to cheer about in his second season.

Although Lindor’s 2022 regular season ended nicely on Wednesday with an ovation from the Citi Field faithful, he looks forward to the opportunity to really make 2022 a special year during the playoffs.

“I’ve always said I’ve played the game for my family, for the fans, the people around me,” said Lindor. “I gave them something to cheer on, but now this is the best time of the year. I want to give them a lot for them to cheer.”