New York Mets Star Francisco Lindor Finishes as Runner-up For NL MVP

New York Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor finished as the runner-up to Shohei Ohtani for the NL MVP Award in 2024.

Oct 17, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) reacts after an out against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the ninth inning during game four of the NLCS for the 2024 MLB playoffs at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

In any other season, the New York Mets might have finally had their first MVP winner in franchise history.

Alas, superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor ultimately came in as the runner-up to Los Angeles Dodgers DH Shohei Ohtani, the unanimous winner, when the results were revealed on Thursday night.

There is no denying that Ohtani was deserving of the award, as he made MLB history with a 50-50 season in his first campaign with the Dodgers. Overall, Ohtani slashed .310/.390/.646 with a 1.036 OPS, 190 OPS+, 54 home runs, 130 RBI, 134 runs scored, 59 stolen bases and a 9.2 bWAR. He led the National League in all of these previously mentioned major statistical categories as well.

As good as Ohtani was this past season, Lindor had a special campaign of his own. Despite getting off to a slow start, Lindor was moved to the leadoff spot in May and never looked bad.

In what was his age 30 season, Lindor slashed .273/.344/.500 with a .844 OPS, 138 OPS+, 33 homers, 91 RBIs, 107 runs scored, 29 stolen bases and a 6.9 bWAR. He also played Gold Glove caliber defense at shortstop with 16 Outs Above Average, the second highest mark in baseball behind Dansby Swanson of the Chicago Cubs. Surprisingly, Lindor was not a finalist at his position for the award.

Lindor helped lead the Mets to their first NLCS appearance since 2015. The star slugger hit a heroic go-ahead two-run homer in the ninth inning against the Atlanta Braves to clinch a Wild Card spot for his team on the last day of the season. He also crushed a go-ahead grand slam to eliminate the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 4 of the NLDS.

Although Lindor's 2024 campaign did not end with an MVP trophy, it will go down as one of the best overall seasons for a position player in Mets history.