The New York Mets, as a franchise, are on the rise, and they have been for years. Steve Cohen bought the team in late 2020 and his first official season in charge was 2021. One of the first moves in his tenure was a groundbreaking trade to acquire Francisco Lindor, who has been a fixture nearly every day in the lineup since then.
Under Lindor’s leadership, the Mets have made the playoffs twice and even went deep into the NLCS against the Dodgers in 2024. With every passing year, Cohen and the Mets have done more and more to establish a winning culture and a sustainable winning product. From massive player acquisitions like Juan Soto to front office acquisitions like David Stearns and a growing analytics team, Cohen has spread his wealth across all levels of the business.
One thing they have not done yet is name a team captain, and it is time.
Francisco Lindor needs to be named as the fifth captain in Mets’ history. Only four other guys, Keith Hernandez, Gary Carter, John Franco, and David Wright, have received this honor as it is only bestowed upon those that are truly deserving of it.
Lindor has 115 home runs, 88 stolen bases and 621 hits in 620 games with the Mets. He has slashed .260/.336/.462 while bringing gold glove caliber defense to the table.
2024 was the year that he really showcased it all for the Mets fans. He was an extra base hit machine and so insanely clutch in the biggest moments. His home run in Atlanta to propel the Mets into the postseason and the Grand Slam in the NLDS to eliminate the Phillies and move to the next round of the postseason will live in Mets lore forever. He finished second in the MVP race, behind Shohei Ohtani, because of his near 30-30 season (33-29), .273 average, 74 extra base hits, and 6.9 WAR.
In Late May of 2024, the Mets were struggling mightily and were nowhere near a playoff spot. The vibes were incredibly low, and the team’s performance had discouraged their loyal fans.
Enter Francisco Lindor.
Lindor called a team meeting with the help of other veterans on the squad. From what was reported, this meeting was held to help his teammates re-focus on fundamentals and maintain positive vibes. He wanted to especially stress the importance of player accountability and feeding off each other to string some wins together. His demeanor changed after this. He became an unstoppable force on both sides of the ball and while the season became fun overnight, he was strictly business.
He put the team on his shoulders and almost took them to the promised land. This is what leaders do. Leaders take a step back, breathe, regroup, and motivate the team to alter bad performance and drive positive results. This is his team, and even with Juan Soto now in the lineup, he has not stopped raking in 2025.
He is now off to a rip-roaring start this season as he has clubbed 5 home runs and has driven in 14 runs in 24 games while hitting .309 and slugging .505. He smacked out a walk off home run last Friday night against the St. Louis Cardinals and has also clobbered 3 leadoff home runs thus far.
Even his 3-run homer in the 7th inning on Monday night against the Phillies proved to be the game winner. In addition to this, he has multiple instances already in which his high-level defense has saved games. In this most recent homestand, he was at the center of a 7-game win streak as he hit .467, knocked out 4 home runs and drove in 8 runs. On top of that, he had an OBP of .500.
It is big hit after big hit and big moment after big moment. He is forcing the conversation with each passing day.
David Wright will get his number retired by the Mets on July 19th and there is growing buzz that Lindor may be named as captain on this day. Despite what many may think, I do not think it would take away from David Wright at all, who last held the captain’s honor in 2018. I think it would actually be far more suitable this way, for it gives David Wright his shine and allows him an opportunity to physically pass the torch to a new generational leader for the franchise.
I will lose my mind if this happens and I really hope we get to experience a moment like this, but it is likely more realistic that a captain is not named until the offseason. It is worth noting that Brandon Nimmo is also a contender for this role along with the possibility of Pete Alonso, who would first need an extended contract before accepting the honor. Brandon very tastefully said in this past offseason that “It is supposed to be one person” who is the captain, but he has seen “many different people step up and lead.”
Having multiple leaders is a great situation to have, and it is way better than the extreme lack of leadership the team had in recent years. However, there should be one true captain in that locker room, and it has been Francisco Lindor for a bit now and it should continue to be him for the next 7 years. He has said that he does not need a formal title in order to lead, but David Wright said that as well back in 2013 and he was still very much deserving of the title.
It will be very interesting to see how the Mets handle this and if they decide to name their fifth captain in franchise history during the season.