Steve Cohen Wants Mets Fans to Cheer Struggling Lindor: 'Positivity Goes a Long Way'

New York Mets star shortstop Francisco Lindor has had a brutal start to the 2024 season, hitting .038 with six strikeouts and a .251 OPS across seven games.

But team owner Steve Cohen is hoping the fans rally around him in an effort to coax him out of his slump:

Cohen was referencing the notoriously demanding Philadelphia fans offering Trea Turner a series of standing ovations in early August of last season while he was struggling in his first year with the Phillies.

Turner not only appreciated the gesture—he purchased 12 billboards around the city with "Thank You, Philly" written on them—but it also seemed to lift him out of a slump.

Before Aug. 3 of last season, Turner was hitting .235 with 10 homers, 34 RBI and 21 stolen bases across 107 games, per Scott Allen of the Washington Post. In the 48 games during the regular season that followed, he hit .337 with 16 dingers, 42 RBI, nine steals and a 1.037 OPS

He then went on to hit .347 with three homers, five RBI, nine runs, four stolen bases and a 1.033 OPS in 13 postseason games.

Would such an ovation spark a similar resurgence for Lindor?

It's hard to say. Before Turner's return to form, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported that the star shortstop was taking extra batting practices well into the night after games, frustrated by his struggles and desperately seeking solutions.

So while a standing ovation from a traditionally tough Philly crowd probably lightened the pressure that Turner was feeling after signing an 11-year, $300 million contract, it would be reductive to suggest that it was the only reason he found his way out of a slump.

Lindor, likewise, carries the pressure that comes with playing on a 10-year, $341 million deal, alongside the pressure that accompanied the Mets trading for him in 2021. He's never fully found his footing in New York—in parts of four seasons, he's hitting .250 with a .772 OPS.

Compare that to Cleveland, where he hit .285 with a .883 OPS in six seasons and was a four-time All-Star. For the Guardians, he had three seasons with 30 or more home runs. Since moving to the Big Apple, he's accomplished that once.

As he works through his own struggles to start the 2024 season, however, it's hard to imagine a collective sign of support from Mets fans wouldn't provide him with a boost.