O Mets just blew a 4-0 lead, all the momentum was on the Dodgers’ side when Francisco Lindor came in the top half of the seventh inning.
Mars Starling was on second and all Lindor needed was a single to give the Mets the lead. Instead, Lindor launched his second home run of the season to put the Mets in first place. 9-4 win against Los Angeles on Friday night.
It was a cathartic moment for the Mets, who felt the momentum return to them, and for the All-Star shortstop who crossed home plate where Marte met him, and the two embraced.
“When you have teammates and people rooting for you, and results like that, I tend to release my emotions more,” Lindor explained after the game. “Mars was by my side, he stayed with me and he was the first person I saw, so I gave him a hug.”
“It was important for him to recover in that situation when we lost the lead. It was huge to give momentum”, said the coach Carlos Mendoza he said. “He’s a very good player and he’s going to move on. It was good to see.”
Lindor’s early-season struggles have been well documented. He entered Friday’s game batting just .151 and less than .100 from the left side without an extra-base hit, so the home run — hit left-handed — was great to see for the hitting shortstop.
The 30-year-old explained that he felt close to his shots the last few games and even the first three at-bats of Friday’s game, but it didn’t come together. But the home run, followed by an infield single, gave Lindor a sigh of relief. He said that when he’s hitting well on one side he tries to imitate the feeling on the other, which he admitted leaves him a “little confused”, but he feels like the things he was doing well on the right side are starting to translate to the right side. left side.
“I’m there and doing it now. Now it’s just a matter of maintaining consistency,” he said.
For the Mets, winners of five games in a row, they will look to continue their winning ways against the Dodgers on Saturday afternoon, and hopefully Lindor’s success can continue throughout the series.
