Erik Boland: Mets sending Francisco Lindor to Yankees? It's not an automatic out
Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor runs to the dugout during a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on July 25, 2026. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
CHICAGO — The weeks ahead of Major League Baseball’s trade deadline is a time of obsessing over what might happen . . . most of which will not.
It is a time of, to borrow from the title of one of the chapters from Robert A. Caro’s The Power Broker: “Rumors and the Report of Rumors.”
Speculation is endless — this reporter certainly isn’t separating himself from that — as everyone involved in the sport, from those in the know to those partially in the know to those miles away from it, tries to piece together who will go where and for how much.
The Yankees, of course, are expected to be among the busiest teams before the deadline as general manager Brian Cashman attempts to upgrade a roster that continues to lose bodies but a roster that, of late, has managed to win more that it has lost. Entering Tuesday night’s game against the White Sox, the Yankees had won 10 of their last 14.
From the start of the season, the Yankees anticipated being in the market for a late-inning bullpen arm (or two) and a righthanded hitting catcher.
But a new potential need has arisen of late: a bat, preferably one from the right side, as sluggers Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge still don’t seem all that close to returning and outfielder Cody Bellinger was lost over the weekend for the next 4-6 weeks because of a Grade 2 left hamstring strain.
The Yankees have had their pro scouts fanned out across both leagues for the better part of the last month, something many clubs do this time of year.
Among the teams the Yankees have been scouting most heavily, according to rival talent evaluators who have run into Yankees scouts at various ballparks, are, but not limited to: Atlanta, the Padres, Marlins, Twins, Nationals and Mets.
The latter team is intriguing for multiple reasons, not the least of which is the Yankees and Mets don’t frequently match up as trade partners, the last deal involving the clubs coming in 2024 when the Yankees sent catcher Luis Torrens to the Mets for cash considerations.
The risk of one team being able to lord “winning” a given trade over the other — and, really, that’s more about the respective fan bases doing the lording than the clubs themselves — is what typically keeps the Mets and Yankees from pulling the trigger on deals, especially involving players of significance.
So, could they match up before Monday?
It can’t be ruled out as, for better or worse, Mets GM David Stearns has demonstrated emotion, and certainly the potential of public backlash, isn’t a driving force in his baseball decisions.
And he has plenty of pieces the Yankees are interested in, primarily bullpen arms like Brooks Raley, former Yankee Luke Weaver and Huascar Brazobán.
One interesting name that has been loosely — very loosely — linked to the Yankees is shortstop Francisco Lindor.
There is no shortage of factors for why such a deal is highly unlikely, starting with the fact Lindor, who turns 33 in November, is owed five years and $160 million after this season.
And the Yankees already have big money, and years, tied up in Judge, Stanton and Bellinger, not to mention starting pitchers Gerrit Cole, Max Fried and Carlos Rodon.
For those reasons, and others, a Mets-Yankees deal involving Lindor has little chance of happening. And it’s not as if the Mets, who do see themselves as a contender in 2027, are flush with shortstop options.
Still . . .
Strictly from the Yankees’ standpoint, and looking at their needs for the rest of this season to further securing their spot as the favorite to win a watered-down American League, a baseball argument can be made for Lindor.
The offense, though looking better the first two games against the White Sox, is in need of a potent bat, especially given the uncertainty with Judge, Stanton and Bellinger.
And shortstop has been particularly a black hole, whether it’s been Anthony Volpe (a bit better of late) or Jose Caballero in the lineup. The switch-hitting Lindor, besides winning two Gold Gloves at the position, is a five-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger Award winner. He does have a full no-trade clause, but it is believed he would waive it to play for the Yankees.
As for the Yankees' top position prospect, shortstop George Lombard Jr., it’s difficult to find anyone in the game — both inside the organization and outside — who don’t predict big things for Lombard in the majors.
But that could also be said of past can’t-miss, sure-to-be-stars organizational prospects like Gary Sanchez, Greg Bird, Jasson Dominguez, Oswald Peraza and Volpe, just to name a handful.
Again, the chances of a Bronx-bound Lindor rests just north of zero %.
But that doesn’t mean, looking just at 2026 and how it might improve the Yankees chances to break their title drought, it isn’t without merit.
Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.
