Mets' Francisco Lindor opens up about ongoing offensive struggles

Before the New York Mets lost 3-1 at the Cleveland Guardians on Monday evening, shortstop Francisco Lindor opened up about his ongoing offensive woes that continued at Progressive Field.

"I’ve always had the pressure," Lindor said about possibly pressing this spring, per Robert Sanchez of SNY. "There’s nobody out there who wants it more than me. I’ve always had the pressure to try and be the best version of Francisco Lindor that I can be. This is good pressure. I love that pressure. There’s not a day that goes by that I say, 'You know what, today I just want to be a bad baseball player.' That has never gone through my head."

Cleveland traded Lindor to New York following the 2020 season, and he signed a 10-year contract extension that could be worth up to $341M before the start of the 2021 campaign. 

The 30-year-old won his third career Silver Slugger Award after he recorded 31 home runs, 31 stolen bases and 33 doubles last season. However, he's more often than not been a shell of his best self this spring. 

Lindor went 0-for-4 on Monday night and saw his average for the season fall to .193. Across the campaign's first 47 games, he hit seven homers and drove home 22 RBI.

"It’s just baseball, you know," Lindor said on Monday. "You have ups and downs, you have good moments, you have bad moments – it’s part of the journey. You gotta understand it, you gotta embrace it, you gotta stay the course. You gotta continue to climb day in and day out."

Once 12-8 last month, the Mets fell to 21-26 on Monday and seem to have no long-term answers for what's ailing them at the plate and on the mound. 

It's widely believed that Mets owner Steve Cohen could sign off on a second-straight summer fire sale if the Amazins remain under .500 through the All-Star break. 

"I’m not a numbers guy," Lindor added. "So I just focus on winning and trying to find ways to win and the numbers will be there at the end of the year. ...But the process is great. I’m relying a lot on my coaches, my teammates – we have a great group of guys here – and I’m working through things. It’s just a matter of getting that batting average up a little bit." 

It's difficult to imagine the Mets turning things around if Lindor continues to look lost at the dish into June.