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The Mets star was excellent in 2024, and more than deserved the nod as MVP Finalist.
For only the eighth time in franchise history — and the first time in 24 years — the Mets will have a representative in the top three for Most Valuable Player.
Shortstop Francisco Lindor was named a finalist for the 2024 MVP Award, alongside Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, and Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte.
Lindor overcame a rough first month of the 2024 season, where he hit a paltry .197/.280/.359 (83 wRC+), to put together a career year in Queens. He ended the season hitting .273/.344/.500 with 33 home runs, 91 RBI and 29 stolen bases. Those numbers were good for a 137 wRC+, a career high for the shortstop, and was good for eighth in the National League. Defensively, Lindor was his typical excellent self, amassing 16 outs above average, finishing ninth in all of Major League Baseball.
Lindor’s excellent two way prowess saw him end the season with a 7.8 fWAR, tied with his 2018 campaign for Cleveland for highest in his career. It was good for second in the National League, and sixth in baseball. He had a truly elite 2024 season.
Unfortunately for Lindor, the man who he is trailing in fWAR is his direct competition for MVP in Shohei Ohtani.
Ohtani put together a truly magical campaign. He hit .310/.390/.646 and became the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season. He paced the National League with 9.1 fWAR as a DH, which is truly mind boggling to think about. He finished third in the entire league in fWAR, trailing behind expected AL MVP Aaron Judge, and expected AL MVP runner-up Bobby Witt Jr.
Ketel Marte was excellent in his own right, mashing the baseball to a top three finish for MVP. He ended the year 10th in baseball and fourth in the National League in fWAR (6.3), and 10th in MLB and third in the National League in wRC+ (151), trailing only Ohtani and Marcell Ozuna.
While Francisco Lindor put up an MVP caliber season worth remembering, and Ketel Marte was one of the most lethal hitters in the sport this year, it is hard to see any other winner but Shohei Ohtani, who put together one of the most magical offensive seasons in baseball history. Regardless of that fact, Lindor deserved to be recognized for what he is — one of the very best players in the game of baseball.
