Francisco Lindor Notes "Mutual Interest" in Mets Extension

Puts "duty to winning" ahead of negotiations

New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (still fun to type) spoke with the team’s media corps from Port St. Lucie on Monday, touching on a number of topics and giving outstandingly forthright insight on nearly all of them.

Naturally, the 27-year-old was asked about a possible long-term extension in Queens (the full press conference can be found here).

Following the offseason trade that brought Lindor and right-handed starter Carlos Carrasco to the Mets for middle infielders Amed Rosario and Andres Gimenez, as well as prospects Isaiah Greene and Josh Wolf, both sides weighing the benefits of a long-term deal seemed like the next logical step.

Mets team president Sandy Alderson alluded to upcoming discussions on the matter shortly after the trade.

“We acquired Francisco because of his present ability and the possibility that he could be a Met long-term,” he said. “There’s no guarantee of that. It’s something that we will approach in the next few weeks.

At his first press conference as a member of the Mets, Lindor said he’s “not against [a long-term commitment]”, adding “it just has to make sense for both sides”.

One would imagine locking up a premier player through his prime — while a substantial financial investment — would be reasonably high atop the Mets’ to-do list, regardless of the cost.

And Lindor likely won’t be opposed to playing out the bulk of his MLB career in Queens considering the foundation in place both on the field and in the penthouse offices.

Is he looking at a 14-year, $340 million deal a la Fernando Tatis Jr.? Likely not.

But a 10-year deal with an average annual value of around $30 million seems to fit the bill for a guy whose 14.0 fWAR since 2018 rank eighth in the majors and +36 outs above average are good for third among MLB shortstops since 2017.

On Thursday, Lindor confirmed that there had been no discussions regarding an extension with the Mets yet, though also conceded that it’s a bit too early for either side to have truly gained a feel for one another before jumping into such weighty negotiations.

“We haven’t found the time, you know? I obviously gotta get to know the organization, get to know the people and they have to get to know me. If something comes up, we’ll see in the future. That’s between my agent and Sandy and the rest of the staff. I just focus on my business and that’s doing things the right way here.”

Lindor added his motivation behind separating the business side of the game from the task at hand — more so with regards to his previously stated goals of having the situation either squared away or tabled ahead of Opening Day — and gave an encouraging answer.

“As players, we have a duty. A duty to show up and win. It would be unfair for me and the rest of the team to have an ongoing conversation about extending — whether it’s me or other players — and we show up on Opening Day and our minds is somewhere else and we don’t focus on our duty.”

“We have a duty and that’s winning. Showing up to the games and to the field every single day and doing things the right way and, hopefully, end up with the W that day. That’s all we can focus on.”

Lindor confirmed later in his presser that there was “mutual interest” in an extension, adding that he’s “never been scared of free agency” and isn’t “shy of an extension” either.

Something to watch as camp trudges on, for sure.

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