New York Mets: Francisco Lindor’s slump is getting ugly

One of the most disconcerting stories of the first month of the season, which is already on the books, is Francisco Lindor’s slump. The All-Star shortstop, appointed as the face of the revamped New York Mets when he signed a $341 million contract extension, has looked lost at the plate for much of the campaign.

Lindor went hitless again on Monday in the New York Mets’ loss against the St. Louis Cardinals, and is batting a putrid .163/.284/.209 with one home run and no stolen bases. The team offense appears to be in a nice little groove right now, having scored at least five runs in three straight games, but Lindor is still slumping.

To make matters worse for Mets’ fans, Lindor, a career .253 hitter with runners in scoring position, is hitting .063 this season in that particular scenario.

Lindor, the Mets’ second hitter, will probably stay there at least for a while longer, as manager Luis Rojas, according to MLB.com’s Savannah McCann, hasn’t mentioned the possibility of moving him down the order just yet.

“The last few days, with runners in scoring position, he hasn’t delivered,” said Rojas. “But think of it this way, where moving him to leadoff or to third, I mean, there’s not a lot of spots where you can drop in, because of what he can bring to a lineup. Being early May still, I think we trust that this kid is gonna turn around. He’s done it in the past.”

The Mets’ shortstop doesn’t have a hit in his last 24 trips to the plate

The Mets’ franchise shortstop doesn’t have a hit in his last 24 appearances, which raises some eyebrows.

“I think his presence, what he brings to the ballpark every day, all the guys energize from it, guys have gotten better because of him,” said Rojas. “You know, this guy’s not starting only because of his bat, he’s just starting because of all the other things that he does. Do we think his bat is going to come along? Yeah, I think his bat is gonna come along.”

Back in 2016 with the Indians, he had a 0-for-27 stretch. And everything turned out just fine for him.

He is still hitting the ball hard at a healthy rate, as his 40.5 hard hit rate suggests (similar to his registers in the last three seasons) but mostly to the ground: his 50.7 ground ball percentage is the highest since his rookie year.

When all is said and done, the Mets will be able to enjoy an All-Star shortstop. However, things are getting ugly right now.