New York Mets
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November 24, 2024

Francisco Lindor – Our MVP

By Gabrielle Raucci
Francisco Lindor , MLB , MLB. Silver Slugger Award , MVP , New York Mets

New York Mets – Shortstop Francisco Lindor has been named the runner-up to 2024 National League MVP, DH Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ohtani won the title unanimously, while Lindor received 23 second-place votes, and seven third place votes. Both players have also won the 2024 Silver Slugger award for their respective positions. 

Shohei Ohtani – NL MVP

It’s no shock or secret that Ohtani would receive numerous accolades for his 2024 season. The 2024 Silver Slugger slashed a .310/.390/.646 with 54 home runs, 130 RBI and 59 stolen bases this year, and was the first player in history to go 50/50 in a season. He is the second player in history to win the title for both the AL and NL and is the first [full-time] Designated Hitter to ever win MVP. With an MLB record-breaking contract of $700 million over 10 years, you’d expect him to put up unprecedented numbers for seasons to come. 

Francisco Lindor – Second Place NL MVP

Francisco Lindor is a player whose leadership and heart have translated to exceptional performance on both sides of the game. He came back from a rough beginning to the season and put up a .273/.344/.500 with 33 home runs, 91 RBI, and 29 stolen bases. He’s the only player in MLB history to have gone 25/25 over three seasons. He is the Mets’ go-to-guy when it comes to providing clutch moments; like his go-ahead game-winning and Wild Card-clinching home run over the Atlanta Braves, his Grand Slam in Game Four of the NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies, AND his NLCS game two leadoff home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers, allowing the Mets to bring the series back Queens.

Considering his scoring in the 99th percentile of defenders in [16] Outs Above Average, per Baseball Savant’s Leaderboard – As well as with fWAR of 7.8, Lindor has exemplified time and time again that he is a first-class ballplayer. Not only has his in-game efforts contributed to the Mets postseason-reaching season, but Mr. Smile has shown Mets fans that he is deserving of Captainship. The late-May meeting he called is credited as the turning point for the Mets season, having been 11 games under .500, and finishing at 16 games above.

Sabermetrics vs. Intangibles

Call me a “purist,” but I can’t help but feel a bit of disappointment in a DH receiving a unanimous Most Valuable Player award. By no means am I saying that Ohtani is undeserving of being the most decorated hitter for 2024 – And I’m not saying that Lindor “would have” won MVP based on stats/metrics alone. But there is a whole other half of the game played that a DH has no part in – How can that make for a “‘Most Valuable Player” by definition? I know we’re in the empirical data/sabermetrics era of baseball, but for an award that embodies “value,” are the intangibles truly not considered?

Our MVP

Ohtani undoubtedly won the NL MVP for the stats he put up, and he is absolutely an unreal ballplayer with unprecedented numbers to back it up. But you just can’t help but reflect and almost romanticize what Lindor has done for the Mets as a leader on the field, at the plate, and in the clubhouse. He’s an elite defender with arguably the most clutch bat in the game – An all-around true embodiment of what baseball fans hold true to the title of “Most Valuable Player.” For us Mets fans, he is our MVP.

 

About the Author

Gabrielle Raucci
Lead Writer - New York Mets

Gabrielle is ONNJSports’ Lead Writer for the New York Mets.

She is a Hudson Valley native, and studied Business Administration/Marketing at SUNY New Paltz and Marist College.

She has years of experience in the sports industry at both the collegiate and professional level – Previously working for Marist College Athletics and MiLB/Tampa Bay Rays affiliate Hudson Valley Renegades in Promotions.

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