New York Mets' Francisco Lindor Sends Team to NLCS With Historic Grand Slam

Francisco Lindor blasted a massive grand slam in the sixth inning of Game 4 of the NLDS on Wednesday, lifting the New York Mets over the Philadelphia Phillies in historic fashion.

Oct 9, 2024; New York, New York, USA; New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) rounds the bases after hitting a grand slam Philadelphia Phillies in the sixth inning in game four of the NLDS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Citi Field. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

The New York Mets needed just one historic swing of the bat to punch their ticket to the NLCS on Wednesday night.

In the bottom of the sixth inning of Game 4 of the NLDS, the Philadelphia Phillies were clinging onto a 1-0 lead. The Mets, up 2-1 in the series, proceeded to load the bases with a single, hit-by-pitch, walk and two wild pitches from reliever Jeff Hoffman.

That brought star shortstop Francisco Lindor up to the plate, while Philadelphia pulled Hoffman in favor of Carlos Estévez.

Estévez immediately attacked Lindor with some heat, but Lindor was all over it.

Lindor crushed the fourth consecutive fastball he saw 398 feet to center with an exit velocity of 109.5 miles per hour. That crowd at Citi Field could tell from the crack of the bat that Lindor had just gone yard, and they were proven right when the ball finally made its way back to Earth.

FRANCISCO LINDOR. GRAND SLAM. #NLDS pic.twitter.com/CdKuEVOfT3

— MLB (@MLB) October 9, 2024

Neither team scored a run for the rest of the night, and the Mets went on to win 4-1. As a result, New York advanced to its first NLCS since 2015.

According to OptaSTATS, Lindor is the first player in MLB postseason history to hit a grand slam that accounted for all of his team's runs in a series-clinching win.

Francisco Lindor of the @Mets is the first player in MLB postseason history to hit a grand slam to account for all of his team's runs in a series-clinching win. pic.twitter.com/90xZLUgeFw

— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) October 10, 2024

Lindor put together a dark horse MVP campaign in 2024, before he missed time at the end of the regular season due to injury. He hit .273 with 31 home runs, 91 RBI, 29 stolen bases, an .844 OPS and a 7.0 WAR across 152 games, on top of contributing two defensive runs saved at shortstop.

So far this postseason, Lindor is batting .259 with six RBI and an .863 OPS. He finished the NLDS batting .277 with five RBI and a .906 OPS.

He will get to continue his playoff run in the next round, where the Mets will meet either the Los Angeles Dodgers or San Diego Padres.

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