It was a rough week for the New York Mets heading into their series against the Marlins. Finishing in the West with a loss to the Seattle Mariners and then losing two of three games to the Oakland Athletics at Citi Field are not the results a team in the wildcard race wants. Fortunately, they managed a comeback series against the Miami Marlins.
A positive aspect of this phase was Francisco Lindor. He continues his MVP-worthy season. In the games from August 10-16, Lindor hit .375/.423/.615 with an impressive OPS of 1.038. Over the course of those games, he hit one home run, two doubles, one triple and scored four runs. This week’s Statistical Spotlight with Francisco Lindor.
Lindor struggled against a variety of right-handed pitchers last week, with all but two of his at-bats coming from the left side of the pitch. He hit 9 of 24 from the left side of the pitch and was hitless in his only at-bat on the other side.
The graphic below shows Lindor’s batting attempts as a left-handed hitter. As the graphic shows, Lindor covered the plate excellently. His only home run came off a pitch that was high and inside. He caught the balls a little outside the zone, but was able to hit them. He was able to reach pitches from outside as well as from below and inside, both of which were outside the strike zone.
Lindor actually had trouble getting the ball up last week. He managed two ground ball outs and two ground ball singles, which are indicated by the two blue dots and two purple dots that are in the zone.
Francisco Lindor’s hitting was remarkable. His move to the leadoff position has been talked about at length, and it’s great to see Lindor still producing from there. He continues to be one of the most underrated players in the major leagues, ranking near the top of the National League fWAR rankings. Since moving to New York City, he has been everything the Mets could have asked for.
