MLB Network set NY Mets SS Francisco Lindor up for backlash with wrongful declaration

Fans have their undying loyalties to certain players. In his four years with the New York Mets, Francisco Lindor has managed to work his way from being whatever it was you thought of him in 2021 to the MVP-chasing leader he is today.

We love Lindor. Declaring him the best shortstop in the league isn’t outrageous even if he has been without an All-Star selection in all four of his seasons with the Mets. But to claim him as the best shortstop of the 2000s so far is wrong.

MLB Network was just asking for Mets hate by naming Francisco Lindor the best shortstop of the 2000s

Have they not heard of Alex Rodriguez or Derek Jeter? There's no bias against broadcasters because their colleague David Ortiz dug his heels in as the best DH of the 2000s so far long ago.

Seeing this graphic triggers a couple of thoughts in the mind of Mets fans. Robinson Cano at second base is believable as long as you forget what he did in a Mets uniform. At least it wasn’t Chase Utley, right?

Everyone included here is either already in the Hall of Fame or likely to land there with the exception being PED users. Cano will have to overcome the same obstacle Barry Bonds and A-Rod failed to. If voters continue to hold the 2017 Houston Astros sign-stealing against Carlos Beltran, they’ll do the same to Cano who was suspended for a full season because of PEDs. The blatant disregard for the rules should be more unforgivable than what anyone in the 1990s or early 2000s did when the Commissioner’s Office turned a blind eye.

It’s unfair for Lindor to make this list because it forces us into stating the truth: he shouldn’t be there over Rodriguez or Jeter. Possibly third on the list of the best at the position of the 2000s, one could make the case A-Rod gets punished on a list here because he transitioned from one position to another early in the decade. It was in 2004, upon joining Jeter and the New York Yankees when he switched from shortstop to third base.

Then there’s the case for Jeter which is undeniable. Sure, he won more championships in the 1990s than he did in all of the 2000s. Despite being an inferior defensive player in comparison to Lindor, he accomplished more in his 14 MLB seasons than Lindor has so far. Almost 2700 of his 3465 career base knocks came in the 2000s. A .307 hitter during that time and as much a leader as Lindor is for the Mets, his 2658 hits in the 2000s alone would be 4 more than Ted Williams had in his entire career. Lindor, already parts of 10 seasons into his career, isn’t going to come close to catching Jeter. He’s a different kind of player, though. In many ways, Lindor has the best attributes of all of the shortstops from the previous generation. He just might finish second in each category.

Was the intention to put together a true list or to have Mets and Yankees fans scrapping over a subjective list that got a few things wrong? Other wrongdoings were done.

The absence of Ichiro Suzuki is problematic. Yadier Molina or Joe Mauer might be better choices than Buster Posey although I wouldn’t lose sleep over that debate. Cano wearing a Mets uniform, however, is the most criminal act of all. If you’re not going to give the Yankees fans Jeter, at least give them Cano in their uniform. Please. I beg of you!