Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor has been one of Major League Baseball’s most talented and exciting players since breaking in with Cleveland in 2015. He made the World Series the following season, has won two Gold Gloves and three Silver Sluggers, and in 2021 was traded to the Mets.
Last year, Lindor became the fourth player in Mets history to compile a 30-30 season, finishing with 31 homers and 31 stolen bases. Ahead of the MLB World Tour: London Series on Saturday and Sunday between the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies, Lindor sat down to talk about his interest in fashion and travel. He also took some time to talk about his life, career and previous time in the United Kingdom.
MLB.com: What was it like leaving Puerto Rico to move to Florida at age 12?
Lindor: It was scary to leave something that I loved, that I was very familiar with, to go to a place where I didn’t speak the language and didn’t even know exactly where it was. Thank God I had good people around me, like my dad, who was able to come at some point to be there with me.
MLB.com: What did moving do for your baseball career?
Lindor: Oh my god, it gave me a lot of confidence. I’m not scared to be by myself now. I’m not scared to be uncomfortable. I appreciate the journey that I had, and I think it was for the best.
MLB.com: How would you describe your game to someone who’s never seen you play?
Lindor: [Laughing] My game is very consistently boring, which is something that I pride myself on. I will make good plays. I will hit my home runs. But I want to do it as consistently as possible. I see LeBron James. Every night, LeBron James scores 25 [points]. He doesn’t do anything special. He did what he was supposed to do that day. Same thing with Lionel Messi. He’s not making crazy plays. He’s just scoring goals. That’s kind of what I pride myself on. I don’t need to be hitting home runs 450 feet. If it’s 400 feet, it’s fine. It’s a home run. I don’t need to be making crazy plays. If it’s a ground ball up the middle and I get to it standing up, turn and throw, I love that. I pride myself on making my game as consistently boring as possible.
MLB.com: What’s been your career highlight to this point?
Lindor: I have had a couple highlights. The World Series is one of them. The World Baseball Classic is one of them. Playing a regular-season game in Puerto Rico was another one. My MLB debut was another — I hit a ball off the wall and ended up tripping around first base. All-Star Games have been highlights. I have my own shoe line with New Balance — Lindor Ones, Lindor Twos, all that stuff. There are a lot of things I’m extremely proud of.
MLB.com: That 2016 World Series was one of the most exciting in recent memory. What do you remember most from it?
Lindor: [Laughing] I blacked out. But I do remember just seeing the fans’ faces, seeing how much history was behind it. I do remember Rajai Davis hitting the tying home run in Game 7. I remember getting my first base hit and stealing second base in the first game. I remember the cold weather. There’s a lot of things I remember, but a lot of things I don’t. I blacked out for some reason.
MLB.com: What was it like getting traded to the Mets after the 2020 season?
Lindor: A lot of emotion. It was great, because I knew I had an opportunity to be somewhere for a very, very long time. I knew they were in transition to becoming this amazing organization, and I wanted to be part of it. With that being said, man, I loved Cleveland. I loved those fans. I loved the whole organization. So it was like, “I won’t get to go to Spring Training with them anymore. I won’t get to go in the clubhouse and call it home.” It was bittersweet, in a way. I was very excited, but at the same time, I was going to miss Cleveland.
MLB.com: What do you like most about living and playing in New York?
Lindor: Living in New York, I love that I get to be another person. Ultimately, that’s what we are — we’re regular human beings. Yeah, we have a status because of what we do, and we are in the entertainment business, but we’re all humans. We’re all the same, so I love that. I also love the fact that I can show up to my house and I can eat anything at any time. It’s a walking city. I wasn’t much of a walker before moving there, but being able to walk around with my daughters and not being stuck in a car to go somewhere, I think that’s pretty cool. And then playing in New York, I love the fact that every day feels like a concert. Every day, it feels like an event. It’s not just a baseball game.
MLB.com: How much do you take advantage of the city’s culture?
Lindor: I appreciate the hustle of people. I appreciate the arts. Everywhere you go, there’s some form of art, whether it’s through a building, or whether it’s in Central Park, or whether it’s underneath a bridge where somebody painted something. I was actually walking around with my wife the other day and I was telling her, “Babe, this is amazing. Nobody looks the same. Nobody is dressed up the same. It’s the same weather for everybody, but we’re all dressing different.” I love that. I love how artsy it is, how authentic it is. Everybody’s in their own world.
MLB.com: Have you always been into fashion?
Lindor: Yeah, because my sister wouldn’t let me come out of the house without dressing up. So that was number one. Number two is, I talk a lot and always have. Eventually, I found out that I can also express myself by not talking and wearing something. Sometimes I don’t feel like talking to anybody, so I put a hood on and that’s my way of expressing, “Hey, I don’t want to be bothered.” There are other days I will have more colors. That’s just the way I feel that day. I like that. I like to be able to express myself through my clothing.
MLB.com: How would you describe your style?
Lindor: My style is I don’t follow trends. I run away from trends. I don’t know what words I can use. It’s versatile — I can go with something more cropped or something longer or something dark or something bright. A lot of people say things like, “I could never pull that off.” To me, it’s like, “You haven’t tried it.” Just because you put something on, you feel timid? I’m not timid when it comes to dressing up. There are certain things I don’t want to put on, but I’m almost fearless in a way. I’m like, “Man, let’s rock it.”
MLB.com: You’ve been to the United Kingdom once before, several years back. What did you like best about it?
Lindor: I loved the food. What did I eat? I don’t remember. But I remember those days because it was good food. I didn’t have to shy out of eating anything. I remember the weather in England almost felt like Seattle. It was wet, but pretty sights, pretty views. My highlight was going to Liverpool. We took the train. I went to the Beatles museum — that was fun. It was interesting to learn about them and their history and how they got formed. I liked the sights of the city. We also went to a Liverpool match [at Anfield]. They told me do not wear anything color-related to the team that was playing. I was like, “What? Why?” Then they explained to me all of it and I was like, “Wow, this is kind of crazy.” We went to a little bar that did a pregame event. In London, we drove around Buckingham Palace, and I got to be a tourist. I probably won’t get to do that this time because I’m coming for work. We also went to Lord’s Cricket Ground in London and I was able to play. I sucked at it!
MLB.com: So you won’t be starting a second career as a cricketer?
Lindor: [Laughing] I wouldn’t catch it with my bare hands. I need a glove. But yeah, when I played, I sucked. They made me look dumb. The ball was bouncing in every direction.
MLB.com: What does it mean to you to be able to showcase baseball in London?
Lindor: Man, I’m excited. I’m truly excited for it, because the game needs to continue to grow. If we show the world how amazing this sport is, it’s going to grow and it’s going to be better for us. I’m looking forward to it. I want people to see and experience the game, now it’s fast. Before, it was a little slow. Now it’s fast. It’s a different feeling.