Francisco Lindor relieved Mets fans are on his side now

Francisco Lindor is enjoying Citi Field much more now that he’s being cheered.

Lindor continued his recent surge at the plate with a two-run home run in the first inning of the Mets’ 4-1 win Saturday over the Padres at Citi Field.

The four-time All-Star shortstop earned a massive ovation as he rounded the bases after being booed regularly during a poor start offensively since signing a $341 million extension following his offseason acquisition from Cleveland.

“It feels great, man. It is a little bit of a relief,” Lindor said of the crowd’s reaction. “In the first couple of games when I got booed, I felt like I was playing on the road. Now I feel like I’m at home.

“And I want to thank the crowd for showing up and supporting the whole team. … We win with them. We don’t win without them, so they’re a big part of our success every single time because they definitely put a lot of pressure on other teams.”

Francisco Lindor celebrates after belting a two-run homer in the Mets' 4-1 win over the Padres.
Francisco Lindor celebrates after belting a two-run homer in the Mets’ 4-1 win over the Padres.
Bill Kostroun

Lindor was slashing .182/.289/.266 with just three home runs over his first 42 games on May 27, but his blast off Padres righty Joe Musgrove into the 7th Line Army fan section in right-center marked his third home run in his last 13 games.


Fill-in outfielder Billy McKinney, who registered 12 RBIs in his first 13 games with the Mets, was a late scratch from Saturday’s lineup with a sore right knee.

Luis Rojas said an MRI exam “came back clean” and “there’s not a high level of concern.” The Mets are listing McKinney as day-to-day.


Seth Lugo struck out the side in the eighth inning after also recording two outs the previous night, his first back-to-back appearances since coming off the 60-day injured list on May 31.

“He just makes us deeper,” Rojas said. “He can go multiple innings. He can be a setup guy. He can come in and close the game. He can do a lot of things for u,s and Seth’s done that since he’s joined us. … I told him in the dugout today, I’m so excited that you’re here. You’re making us even deeper now.’ ”


Rojas said the neck stiffness that bothered Miguel Castro during Friday’s outing is “not a major concern,” but the righty reliever was unavailable. … Jeff McNeil (hamstring) and J.D. Davis (hand) did running drills on the field before the game. McNeil is slated to begin a minor-league rehab assignment Sunday for Single-A Brooklyn.

source: nypost.com