New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor has been one of MLB’s best all-around players since his rise to superstardom in Cleveland. The National League MVP runner-up to Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani last season, Lindor tallied 33 home runs and 91 RBI while posting an .844 OPS in 152 games.
Taking home his fourth Silver Slugger award last season, Lindor helped anchor a Mets lineup that went all the way to the National League Championship Series. Now through four seasons in New York, Lindor has posted a 122 OPS+ with the Mets while consistently ranking as one of the league’s premier defensive shortstops.
New York’s lineup was filled with talent last season, as Lindor was often followed by some combination of Mark Vientos, Pete Alonso and J.D. Martinez. Just completing his 14th MLB season and first in New York, Martinez is now a free agent who has a career decision to make.
It was reported by John Heyman of the New York Post on Jan. 30 that Martinez has made the decision not to retire. While it remains to be seen if Martinez returns to the Mets, he received a message from Lindor on Instagram.
“I thought you was doing pickleball?” Lindor wrote under Martinez’s Instagram post.
this is so funny lmao pic.twitter.com/3VjcQemthm
— olivia (@oliviapipia) February 7, 2025
Lindor’s question comes after it was announced by JOOLA, a pickleball company, that it had signed Martinez.
“Major League Baseball All-Star and World Series Champion J.D. Martinez brings one of the purest swings in the game of baseball to the sport of pickleball, signing an exclusive deal with JOOLA to prepare to transition to professional pickleball after his baseball career,” the company announced in a Feb. 3 press release.
