Friday, September 25

Welcome back to the Mets Beat newsletter! Anthony DiComo has covered the Mets for MLB.com since 2007, including the past 17 seasons full-time on the beat. 

ARLINGTON -- For four years running, Francisco Lindor has been the Mets’ nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award.

It’s something Lindor takes quite seriously, for multiple reasons. One is that like Clemente, Lindor grew up in Puerto Rico. As a child in school, he learned about the Hall of Famer. Such shared history, linking generations, means everything to Lindor and his family.

The other reason is that, in many ways, Major League Baseball has no higher honor than the Clemente Award. Unlike on-field accolades such as an MVP plaque or even a World Series ring, the Clemente Award is based entirely on philanthropy -- on what a player brings to his community.

So what would it mean to Lindor to finally win it, after nearly half a decade of trying?

“It means that the kid my parents raised me to be is doing somewhat what they taught me to do,” Lindor said.

“It would be something that I would cherish for the rest of my career, probably one of the most important awards that I earn, that I win,” he added. “So I would love to win it. I encourage people to vote for me. Man, to represent the Mets and to win something like that … it would be great. It would be an honor and it would be a privilege for sure.”

Among Lindor’s newer initiatives is a collaboration with Seen, a nonprofit that helps families with children navigating physical disability. Lindor’s stepsister has dealt with similar challenges, which is part of why the program has been so important to him and his wife, Katia, who hosts the families at Citi Field.

Lindor is also proud of his partnership with New Balance, which allows him to deliver backpacks and school supplies to hundreds of children each year.

“I remember as a kid seeing my parents struggling to buy all of us school supplies,” Lindor said. “It was tough, you know?”

With the Mets, Lindor said, team owner Alex Cohen has been an inspiration with her own philanthropy, which has only pushed Lindor to do more. Like Lindor, Cohen comes from a Puerto Rican family, providing another connection to Clemente and his namesake award. It stands to reason that Lindor will continue earning Clemente nominations until the day his name is finally called.

In the interim, Lindor said, “I am going to continue to be me." He laughed. “If the Mets want to continue to nominate me, that would be great. At some point, I would love to win it.”

At 73-85, the Mets are no longer at risk of losing 90 games. When was the last time that happened?

A) 2023

B) 2017

C) 2013

D) 2009

It was around early August, Andy Green said, that he first considered pursuing the job of Mets manager full-time. When he initially took over for Carlos Mendoza in June, Green was reluctant. Mindful of a promise he had made to his teenage daughters years earlier, that he wouldn’t return to managing until they had graduated high school, Green didn’t really want to accept the role. But this was a short-term assignment that fell squarely in his line of duty, so Green relented.

Then something funny happened: as the Mets began experiencing relative success under his watch, Green found he was enjoying the job. He began realizing, as Lindor later put it, that “opportunities to manage, they don’t come every day.” So Green had conversations first with his family, then with president of baseball operations David Stearns. Ultimately, he told Stearns in early September that he’d like to keep managing.

All that led to Tuesday, when the Mets announced they had signed Green to a three-year contract to remain in his role through 2029. As Stearns put it, “I’m thrilled that Andy has gotten to the point where this is the right choice for him and his family.”

• Nobody -- and I genuinely mean nobody -- deserves our love and appreciation more than radio play-by-play man Howie Rose. The lead section of last week’s newsletter was a preview of Rose’s retirement ceremony, which the Mets unfortunately postponed to next year due to rain. It was an emotional weekend nonetheless for Rose, a lifelong Mets fan who spent the better part of four decades living out his childhood dream. If you missed this profile on Rose, it’s not too late to give it a read.

• One of the most gruesome things I’ve seen on a baseball field took place last week at Citi Field, when Nolan McLean accidentally kneed Jared Young in the head as both attempted to field a ground ball. Young, who lay motionless for some time following the collision, was diagnosed with a concussion and won’t return to the Mets this season. The episode was also difficult for McLean, who dealt with the guilt of injuring a teammate, calling it "traumatizing." He couldn't put his mind at ease until he heard from Young later that night. 

• In better news, Carson Benge owns the Mets’ record for hits by a rookie after passing Pete Alonso. And A.J. Ewing is in possession of the Mets’ rookie record for stolen bases, though Benge is hot on his tail.

• Two years after his breakout 2024 season, Mark Vientos hasn’t come close to reapproaching those heights. His future -- long a topic of conversation in Queens -- remains fluid at the tail end of another lost season. But during an interview last week, Vientos made one thing clear to me, saying: “Of course I want to be a New York Met.”

• Christian Scott’s season is over. More on what he called “a good one to build off of".

•  Finally, the Mets are close to hiring former Twins president of baseball operations Derek Falvey for a front-office position (no, not general manager). Falvey and Stearns spent two years together in Cleveland early in their careers.

B) 2017

Coming off consecutive playoff appearances, the 2017 Mets finished a disappointing 70-92. Before that, they hadn’t lost 90-plus games since 2009.

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