With stage set, stoic Lindor walks it off with stone-cold reaction

NEW YORK -- Francisco Lindor’s reaction, if it can be called that, was one of pure stoicism. Lindor swung his bat and dropped it in an eyeblink, giving the ball a token glance as it soared upward. He didn’t bother watching it land in the second deck in right. Instead, Lindor set his gaze on the dugout, where his teammates were already spilling onto the field.

Lindor had just hit his first walk-off home run as a Met, delivering a 5-4 win over the Cardinals in one of the more chaotic games Citi Field has seen this season. He was proud of his handiwork.

“That’s why he’s an elite player and a special player,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “The moment is never too big for him. He knows what’s at stake, and he lives for those moments.”

Until that point, it had been a fruitless game for Lindor, who popped up in his first at-bat and flew out in each of his next two, stranding runners in scoring position both times. Lindor was 0-for-4 heading into the ninth. The game script, meanwhile, had imploded around him.

Trailing for most of the middle innings, the Mets had tied things on a two-run rally in the fifth, which Juan Soto punctuated with an RBI single to snap an 0-for-12 skid. The Cardinals scored in the top of the sixth; the Mets answered in the bottom of the inning. The Mets took a lead of their own in the eighth; the Cardinals answered in the ninth.

In the dugout at that point, the Mets regrouped, drawing on all their previous experiences of winning these types of games. It helped that Lindor, Soto and Pete Alonso were due up in the bottom of the ninth, though the Mets didn’t need to take it nearly that far. The third pitch Ryan Fernandez threw was a belt-high, 91 mph cutter, which Lindor crushed 108.8 mph off the bat.

The result was his 250th career homer, coming 11 days after his 1,500th career hit. Lindor is the first player in Major League history whose 250th homer doubled as a walk-off.

“It felt fantastic,” he said, “because I knew we were going to win.”

Although Lindor had never previously hit a walk-off homer with the Mets, he’s no stranger to these situations. Twice with Cleveland, Lindor delivered walk-off homers. On five other occasions, he produced a walk-off RBI, including a sacrifice fly earlier this season against the Blue Jays.

“You feel good about your chances,” Mendoza said.

Friday’s homer was merely a continuation of what Lindor has accomplished over the last 11 months. His 2024 season was arguably the best of his career, both on the field and off. Now fully comfortable in his adopted home of New York, Lindor is the clear focal point of a clubhouse that also includes Soto, Alonso and other stars. He contributed some of the most significant hits of the Mets’ playoff run last year and is back to doing the same this season.

“He’s got a good feel for what’s going on,” said starter David Peterson, who pitched into the sixth. “He obviously has a lot of leadership in him, and he takes on that role really well. And it doesn’t hurt being the best shortstop in the game.”

Through 19 games, Lindor is batting .263/.322/.395 with two home runs and two stolen bases -- numbers that may not jump off the page, but that sit on a far higher plane than at this time last year. Fears of him becoming mired in another significant early-season slump have proven unwarranted. Lindor is already back to being Lindor, with a .321 average over his last 14 games.

“There’s a lot that defines him -- not only moments like this, but as soon as he gets to the ballpark, he’s impacting people in a positive way,” Mendoza said. “Just his presence, his interactions, the way he pushes people, the way he encourages people -- and not only players, but coaches, support staff, everyone in this building. His presence, you can feel it every time he’s around. I’m glad I have him.”