After calling team meeting, Lindor (4-for-4) leads Mets to win

NEW YORK -- If you are keeping count, the Mets are 1-0 since having a players-only meeting after Wednesday’s 10-3 loss to the Dodgers. It was Francisco Lindor who initiated the meeting, so it’s fitting that he played an integral role in the club’s 3-2 victory over the D-backs on Thursday night at Citi Field.

Lindor had one of his best games of the season, collecting a season-high-tying four hits and driving in two of New York’s three runs while extending his hitting streak to nine.

“It felt good to contribute to a team win,” Lindor said. “This is not about being the main character of [holding] a team meeting. It’s not what it’s really about. Anybody can have a good night tonight, and I would have been happy. It just worked out that it was me.”

Lindor held the meeting Wednesday evening after the Mets lost eight of their past nine games. Like many on the team, he wants the players to pay more attention to details like they did on Thursday and maintain the positive vibes throughout the year.

“[We have to] focus on the process, being better and having the urgency of winning,” Lindor said. “Vibes are the most important thing on a daily basis. You have to be optimistic. You have to stay upbeat. You have to stay in the state of mind where you believe you could stay upbeat -- playing with a lot of energy and playing with a lot of passion.”

Entering the game, Lindor was off to a slow start, hitting .211 and going just 10-for-52 [.192] with runners in scoring position. But throughout the process, he has kept the glass half full.

“I’m not as bad as I have been, and I’m not as good as what I showed today,” Lindor said. “Today, 4-for-4, it was a great day. I’m not that good. I’m going to have my ups and downs again. I’m just understanding that the highs are going to come and the lows are going to come. I’m going to stay in the middle and be the best version of myself day in and day out.”

Teammate J.D. Martinez was the best version of himself in the bottom of the eighth inning against right-hander Ryan Thompson. With the score tied at 2, Martinez swung at the first pitch he saw and hit the ball into the hitter’s eye in center field to give the Mets a one-run lead. According to Statcast, the exit velocity was 109.4 miles per hour and the ball traveled a projected 430 feet. It was the slugger’s 14th career go-ahead home run in the eighth inning or later and first since Sept. 29, 2022, while with the Red Sox.

“It felt good to finally hit a ball in the barrel,” Martinez said. “To be able to put a good swing on a pitch, it obviously helped us. It was huge.”

Martinez called Wednesday’s team meeting “one of the better ones” he’s experienced in the big leagues. He based it on the positivity he felt throughout the locker room.

“[It was] us leaving the meeting confident. … It was a healthy meeting,” Martinez said. “It was just the atmosphere, the way everyone interacted and how we all left [the meeting]. It wasn’t just one of those meetings where you just kind of said, ‘OK, we have to be better.’ It was like, ‘No. Let’s start having fun again and start enjoying this.’

“… I think it’s clear as day, we’re in every single game. We have been struggling toward the end. Those are things you can turn around quickly. It’s not like we are going out there and getting blown out every night. We have been in every single game all year. Everyone was able to talk, get a couple of things off their chest. Everybody left in a positive way.”

But it was Lindor who led the way on offense. With New York behind, 2-0, the shortstop led off the bottom of the third inning and hit a homer over the left-center-field fence off left-hander Brandon Hughes. In the seventh inning, it was Lindor again. He tied the score with a single to right field off right-hander Ryan Thompson, plating Pete Alonso, who had lined a pinch-hit double after escaping serious injury following a hit-by-pitch on Wednesday night.

With the victory, the Mets (23-33) snapped a three-game losing streak. But Lindor said it’s time to turn the page. New York is back at it again on Friday night against Arizona.

“Every game matters,” he said. “From here on, we have to focus on the task day in and day out. Enjoy this [win] for a little bit, and then next. Turn the page. Focus on tomorrow.”