Mets news: Ex-Mets GM suggests Francisco Lindor’s struggles go beyond the field

Losers of eight straight games, things really haven’t gone the way of the New York Mets as of late. A 3-1 start has fallen away to the Mets’ current 7-12 record, which is good enough for last in the NL East at the moment. One of the reasons for New York’s rough start? A slumping offense, which has scored two or fewer runs in seven of its last eight. Shortstop Francisco Lindor has struggled in particular. While speaking with Foul Territory, former Mets general manager Jim Duquette opined that Lindor’s struggles could extend off the field as well.

“Most of the excuses are inexcusable really,” Duquette stated. “And I’ll take this a step further. I don’t know if you guys have watched a lot of those games like I have, but I don’t see him interacting with his teammates as much as he normally does too. And I don’t know the reason behind that at the moment. There’s a lot of things there with Lindor.”

Lindor is currently hitting just .184 with a solo home run on the season. While that home run was the Mets’ lone source of offense in their 2-1 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday, the All-Star shortstop has struggled all season long to this point. He’s notched just three multi-hit efforts to this point, while going hitless in 12 of New York’s 19 games.

As the Mets look to climb out of the NL East cellar, Lindor and the rest of the offense will need to wake up. A weekend road trip to Chicago’s North Side to face the Cubs awaits, followed by a nine-game homestand to close out the season’s first month. During that stretch at Citi Field, three likely non-contending clubs, the Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies, and Washington Nationals, come to Queens. Can Lindor begin to turn his season around at Wrigley? Or will he return to the Big Apple still mired in an extended slump?

Losers of eight straight games, things really haven’t gone the way of the New York Mets as of late. A 3-1 start has fallen away to the Mets’ current 7-12 record, which is good enough for last in the NL East at the moment. One of the reasons for New York’s rough start? A slumping offense, which has scored two or fewer runs in seven of its last eight.