3 Mets player who will be better in 2023, 2 who will be worse

2) NY Mets will get a better year from Francisco Lindor

Francisco Lindor is another guy who had a good year in 2022. Compared to year one with the Mets, he felt like a completely different player.

Still, it wasn’t quite at the level of his best years in Cleveland. The .270/.339/.449 slash line falls short of the career numbers of .277/.342/.474. Lindor, much like the rest of the league, is striking out a ton. His 133 strikeouts in 2022 blew away his previous high of 107 from back in 2018. It was actually only the second time he has ever reached triple-digits.

More power is what the Mets could use out of Lindor. It’s not even with home runs. We can accept him hitting 26 again if it comes with 107 RBI. Lindor does need to start hitting more doubles. He had only 25 last year. For a guy who topped 40 two-base hits three years in a row while also hitting over 30 home runs, we know it’s something he’s capable of.

Having already witnessed Lindor get better in 2022, we should have faith he can take another step in 2023.

Now fully comfortable in New York with the woes of the 2021 season long forgotten, becoming a true MVP candidate should be on Lindor’s mind for this season. Although he had a ninth-place finish last season in the voting, it was a distant placement.

The 2023 season might not be the year where Lindor has his signature season. This doesn’t mean he can’t get immensely better.