Francisco Lindor Needs To Be an All-Star This Time Around
Lindor has never been an All-Star as a Met. This is the year that should change.

With the New York Mets in the midst of a 10-game slate, which includes three against the Philadelphia Phillies and seven with the Atlanta Braves, it is time to talk about Francisco Lindor.
After all, Lindor’s heroics against these two National League East foes at the tail end of last season cannot be overlooked. With the Mets in Atlanta for a win-and-in Game 161, Lindor smashed a go-ahead, two-run homer to put New York ahead 8-7 in a rollercoaster win that clinched a postseason berth for the team.
Less than two weeks later, with the Mets trailing the Phillies 1-0 in Game 4 of the NLDS, Lindor came up with another game-changing hit — this time, a go-ahead grand slam off Carlos Estévez. Lindor’s second-career playoff grand slam proved to be all the offense that the Mets would need in Game 4, as they cruised to a 4-1 victory, punching their ticket to the NLCS and a date with the eventual World Series champion Dodgers.
Those two swings were far from one-offs for the shortstop, who at the time was in year four in Queens after a trade before the 2021 season brought him over from Cleveland.
In the 2024 season, Lindor had arguably the best year of his career, accumulating the second-most fWAR in the NL (7.8). He slashed .273/.344/.500 with an OPS of .844 and a wRC+ of 137, while slugging 33 homers, driving in 91 runs as a leadoff hitter and swiping 29 bags.
As has become the standard throughout Lindor’s career, he was also one of the game’s best at shortstop, ranking in the 99th percentile with 16 Outs Above Average (OAA).
Simply put, if not for a late-season back injury and Shohei Ohtani putting up one of the best statistical seasons ever, Lindor would have been the MVP of the National League. Still, he finished second to Ohtani and won his second consecutive Silver Slugger Award.
For all his success, Lindor was not named an All-Star, and through four full seasons, he is yet to be named to a Midsummer Classic while representing the Orange and Blue. It is time for that to change.
Stats and rankings taken prior to play on June 17.
A Notoriously Slow Starter

Lindor last made the All-Star team in 2019, which is almost hard to fathom considering he has received MVP consideration in three different seasons since. Over the course of his 11-year MLB career, Lindor has always hit better in the second half as opposed to the opening half of the season.
As opposed to a .290 batting average and .852 OPS in the second halves of seasons, Lindor has posted just a .264 average and .798 OPS in 795 first-half games in his career. This was on full display in ’24, as he hit at just a .253 clip in the first 95 games of the season.
If we dig deeper, we can see that Lindor hit just .229 from March through May. Early June is typically when All-Star ballots are released, which surely made some fans hesitant to include his name. He followed up the slow start with a .290 average in June, combined with an .871 OPS and a perfect 7-for-7 stolen base record.
By the time the midpoint in the season rolled around, Lindor had 26 doubles, 17 home runs and 18 stolen bases while his wRC+ sat at 122. His 4.0 fWAR at the break trailed only Elly De La Cruz among NL shortstops, and was ahead of Mookie Betts, Trea Turner and CJ Abrams — all of whom were sent to Arlington to take part in All-Star festivities.
Even with the Mets in the middle of a mid-season surge that eventually turned around what looked to be a lost season, they were awarded just one All-Star: first baseman Pete Alonso, who, coincidentally enough, was having the worst year of his career.
After all that transpired in the second half of the season, Lindor would surely tell you that an honor that reflects just half a season of play means nothing to him; however, adding a fifth All-Star selection to his mantle is something that has been years in the making.
Lindor’s turnaround in 2024 coincided with the Mets’ turnaround. Since May 18, 2024, Lindor has accrued the most fWAR (10.1) in the NL while posting the third-best wRC+ (150).
Lindor’s All-Star-Worthy 2025 Campaign
Hitting leadoff in every game he’s playing in 2025, Lindor has picked up where he left off.
Topping a Mets lineup that has seen underperformance from many of its stars, including Mark Vientos, Brandon Nimmo and even Juan Soto (despite a 144 OPS+), Lindor has been key in setting the table for a club that has the most wins in the NL.
In his age-31 season, Lindor has gotten off to a hot start, slashing .279/.353/.475 with an .828 OPS. Moreover, he is one of 16 players in the sport with at least 10 home runs and 10 steals, tallying 14 and going 13-for-15 on the bases.
While his numbers with runners in scoring position have been bad (to put it lightly), Lindor has delivered three walkoffs for the Mets already, most notably a game-winning home run against St. Louis on April 18.
Offensively, Lindor’s metrics are on par with those of his near-MVP season a year ago, as his 134 wRC+ in 2025 narrowly trails his 2024 number for his career-best.
How Lindor Ranks Among His Peers
Francisco Lindor has been the best shortstop in the NL, and there is really no other way to slice it.
Among qualified NL shortstops, Lindor is tops in fWAR and wRC+ while ranking second in long balls. Additionally, he is top-five in the pack in runs, hits, steals, doubles and RBIs.
While missing just two games this season (due to the birth of his child and a fractured toe), the value that he brings on both sides of the ball indicates that he should not only be an All-Star, but that he deserves to start the game.
Even after missing a game with the toe injury, Lindor came off the bench a night later and came through with yet another key hit: a go-ahead two-run double in Colorado.
Fans across New York and baseball as a whole are taking notice. In the first MLB All-Star voting update, Lindor was head-and-shoulders above Betts, leading shortstop voting in the NL by over 400,000 votes.
Even with nearly a month left until the stars head to Atlanta, Lindor’s case for the Midsummer Classic speaks for itself. Barring a catastrophic slump or injury, 2025 looks to be the year that Lindor should finally get his first All-Star nod as a Met, and he seems to already be well on his way.