Francisco Lindor on celebrating his historic Mets’ deal and setting the bar for next generation of shortstops

WASHINGTON — Francisco Lindor is one of three Major League Baseball players in history who can describe what it feels like to ink a deal worth at least $341 million. Mookie Betts ($365 million) and Mike Trout ($426.5 million) are the only other MLB athletes who know the feeling.

It all came together for the superstar shortstop in the 11th hour of his self-imposed deadline late Wednesday night. Lindor and the Mets had been in a stalemate since Monday, when the club offered a reported 10-year, $325 million contract extension. Lindor counter-offered with 12 years for $385 million and on Thursday he said, “I never drew a line in the sand.” He described his thought process as optimistic throughout those final few days. Though, according to sources, the Mets’ confidence that a deal would get done was low if Lindor didn’t close the $60 million gap.

And then Lindor picked up the phone late Wednesday night in his hotel room in the Nation’s Capital.

“I was just happy that my agent (David Meter) called me,” Lindor said. “He’s like, ‘Hey, 341. How does that sound?’ I’m like, ‘Alright, man. It sounds really good. Let’s do it.’ He’s like, ‘You sure?’ I’m like, ‘Yeah man, let’s do it.’”

Meter informed Mets team president Sandy Alderson and, just like that, the deal was done. Lindor’s 10-year contract goes into effect in 2022, and it will keep him in Queens until 2031. The $341 million he will receive has some deferments, but the overall value makes him the richest shortstop in MLB history and the third highest-paid player in the league. He will no longer become a free agent in the offseason.

How did Lindor celebrate the deal? Well, he wanted to be in his own house, surrounded by his fiancee Katya and his daughter, screaming until his voice was hoarse. He wanted to hug and kiss his family, and then jump into his pool. But he was stuck in the team hotel here, so he screamed “a little,” he said. Then he called his closest family and friends, including Roberto Perez, plus players on the team — no matter that it was nearly midnight — and shared the good news.

“I called (my dad), he was happy, he was ecstatic,” Lindor said. “And I told him I wanted to scream. And he said, ‘No, no, no, don’t scream, don’t scream.’ I’m like, ‘Pops, what are you talking about?’ I’m like, ‘You know when you drive down the highway and you see a billboard with the Powerball that says $300 million? Imagine you getting that right now. You’re going to tell me you’re not going to scream? I’m going to scream. I want to scream.’”

Lindor said his Sunday night Italian dinner with Mets owner Steve Cohen in Port St. Lucie played a role in the negotiations. It gave the shortstop a good sense of where the billionaire was coming from and how high his ceiling for a contract would ultimately be (as it turned out, $385 million was too far). Lindor even thought Cohen’s tweet last week about “crowdsourcing the answer” for what the shortstop would accept was funny. Lindor told him as much at dinner while he ate chicken parm that was “really good,” even though Cohen didn’t care for his ravioli.

“He’s all about winning and I think we won with this,” Lindor said. “Both sides are happy, are in a good, friendly zone, and I can’t wait to be stuck to his hip for the next 11 years.”

Luis Rojas was already in bed when he heard the news, on a phone call with his wife. Rojas told her about the deal immediately before texting some other Mets coaches to share in the delight. The skipper said, despite the Mets being bummed out that Opening Day was postponed, Lindor’s long-term commitment had a definite impact on their energy Thursday.

It gave players an obvious boost and a clear sign that they’re playing for a big-market team — knowing that they get to keep their shortstop for the next decade.

“Just to see that he’s going to be here for that period of time, it can give you that sense of winning mentality and presence that you’re going to have with just one guy,” Rojas said. “I think a lot of guys can benefit from it, and we’re looking forward to more guys being around potentially that long.”

Lindor brings up everyone around him. In just six weeks, he’s already influenced the way his teammates play, how they present themselves on and off the field and all he talks about is winning. When he agreed to the 10-year, $341 million contract, he wasn’t just doing it for himself. Lindor said it was important for him to set the bar for the next shortstop class, while many of his peers and competitors, including Carlos Correa, Trevor Story, Corey Seager and Javier Baez, hit free agency after the 2021 season.

“Players did that for me. They set up the path for me,” Lindor said, citing Manny Machado, Albert Pujols and Carlos Beltran as players who previously set the benchmark for large contracts. “And that’s why I’m getting paid what I’m getting paid today.

“It’s my turn to set up the market for the next players to come, and then they’re going to do it for somebody else behind them. That’s what it’s all about. The next one in line.”

Lindor isn’t worried about what kind of athlete he’ll be when his contract formally ends (he’ll be 38 years old). He’s not concerned with how much energy he’ll have and how durable he’ll be by his late 30s. But he does know one thing.

“I’ll be a bad mother f’er,” Lindor said. “That’s it. That’s all I got to tell you.”

Tweets by @SportsMeter