QUEENS, NY — There was a bit of relief to Francisco Lindor’s voice before his Mets took on the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday evening in Game 3 of the NLDS — the first time in 16 days that the team has played in front of the Citi Field faithful and the first time Lindor has played in Queens in a month.
“It feels great to be back home,” Lindor said. “…Finally, I get to play and be back home.”
New York’s superstar shortstop missed the Mets’ final homestand of the season after suffering a lower back injury in Philadelphia on Sept. 13, proceeding to miss more than one week and sit helplessly by as his teammates battled to stay in the postseason race.
The toll was significant on the Mets’ MVP, who was despondent during the early portions of his recovery that he was a shell of his usual vibrant self that earned him the nickname “Mr. Smile.”
“When I wasn’t playing, I had to shift my mentality because I felt like I was not being the good cloud in the clubhouse,” Lindor said on Tuesday. “I was so worried about trying to get healthy and thinking a little too much and not smiling and not having fun and not enjoying the process.”
His blues caught the attention of manager Carlos Mendoza, who made it a point to help the 30-year-old get his mind back on track.
“He said, ‘Hey, I want to make sure that you’re smiling, that you’re still trying to find comfort in where you are in life right now,'” Lindor recalled his manager saying. “It’s part of the process, and we understand that you can get back and you want to be back on the field. So just go through it with a smile. I appreciate that mentality. It was tough, but it’s nothing that nobody else has ever done.”
Lindor did manage to get back in time, though the understanding was that he would be managing the pain in his back for as long as the Mets season lasted. Yet he felt good enough to hit one of the most famous regular-season home runs in franchise history — a top-of-the-ninth, two-run, go-ahead home run against the Atlanta Braves on Sept. 30 to clinch a postseason berth.
Entering Tuesday night, he was 4-for-11 in his previous three games, which included a ninth-inning single off Milwaukee Brewers star closer Devin Williams in Game 3 of the Wild Card Series to help set the table for Pete Alonso’s memorable three-run home run, which lifted the Mets to the NLDS. He also singled in the top of the ninth of Game 2 on Sunday off Phillies closer Matt Strahm with his side trailing 6-4. Mark Vientos followed with a two-run home run to tie the game.
It has gotten to the point where the pain in his back is nowhere near the front of his mind, adding that he only feels it when he gets up after sitting for too long. But he has an extensive 40-minute pregame routine just to warm the back up to avoid any concerns of reaggravating it.
“I’m in a very good spot. I can’t praise the trainers enough,” Lindor said. “They’ve done a very good job… My back is much, much better. I’m not even thinking about it at this point. I do go through the longer process… but I’m going through a long process because I’m trying to make sure I stay healthy. It’s not because it hurts so much that I have to go through this whole process.”
It is a considerable weight lifted from the mind (and back) of the Mets’ most valuable player this season.
“When it comes to just being in the position I am in today, I’m happy, I’m excited, I’m blessed,” Lindor said. “I’m enjoying the process. Knowing that my teammates worked so hard to be where we are today, that everybody’s just looking at each other in the eye and saying, ‘Now this is fun.’ Let’s continue to move forward.”
