Throughout 2024, shortstop Francisco Lindor and other players routinely mentioned how the “vibes” inside the New York Mets’ clubhouse helped the squad bounce back from a 22-33 start to the season and ultimately complete a trip to the National League Championship Series.
This time around, the Mets dropped two of their first three games of the campaign but then became the hottest team in all of MLB en route to entering Friday with a league-best record of 18-7. For a piece produced by Jorge Castillo that was published on Friday, Lindor spoke about the positivity hovering over the Amazins even as free-agent signing Juan Soto has struggled at the plate.
“Last year we weren’t playing well,” Lindor said about where the Mets were roughly 11 months ago. “Now we have vibes. The music is louder. The chemistry from the guys is a lot better than what we had at the beginning of last year. The organization feels more stable. The culture is beautiful. It feels a lot better and that’s very important. It takes years of that growing.”
Lindor’s offensive production is a big reason fans have largely been able to ignore Soto’s numbers throughout the opening month of the campaign. Traditionally a slow starter, Lindor slashed .349/.402/.570 with a .972 OPS, five home runs and 13 RBI over his last 21 games leading up to Friday’s series opener at the Washington Nationals (11-14).
Meanwhile, ESPN stats show that first baseman Pete Alonso began Friday leading the Mets (among qualified players) with a .341 average, six homers, 26 RBI and a 1.122 OPS. Thus far, Alonso has been worth much more than the value attached to the two-year deal he signed in February to continue playing for what’s been his only MLB club.
As of Friday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook had the Mets and New York Yankees (15-10) tied for second among the betting favorites at +800 odds to win the 2025 World Series. Plenty will go right and wrong for the Mets over the next handful of months, but one can’t blame the club’s fans for dreaming big after the first 25 games of the season.
