Francisco Lindor bought some time. For about 18 seconds he paused, formulating his thoughts and debating how to respond after what sure looks like another personal slight. After a regular season and during a postseason in which Lindor has done just about everything for the Mets, the end-of-season hardware is not piling up. Maybe he will win a Silver Slugger or perhaps the Commi sioners Trophy, given to the team that wins the World Series. Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor was snubbed as a Gold Glove finalist. Corey Sipkin for the NY POST And that would be just fine with him. After an All-Star Game snub, Lindor was not among the three finalists for the NL Gold Glove at shortstop. Explore More I had a good defensive year, but I gue s theres other players that had a better defensive year than me, Lindor tactfully answered. At the end of the day, Im trying to win a World Series. Im trying to make it to the World Series and then win it. And I gue s hopefully next year I get a chance at [a Gold Glove] again. Lindor has set his sights on the larger honors in a season that wont include the smaller ones. Since Lindor was dealt to the Mets ahead of the 2021 season, he has been the fourth-most valuable player in baseball, according to FanGraphs WAR. In that span, he has yet to crack an All-Star team. Some of the blame can be placed on slow starts and fast finishes, which are not rewarded with a mid-summer honor, and maybe some can be placed on Lindor simply losing the popular vote. Fans voted in the Phillies Trea Turner (who had mi sed considerable time with injury) over Lindor this year. Mookie Betts was selected and got hurt, which led to the players selecting the Reds Elly De La Cruz. MLB chose CJ Abrams as the lone representative from the Nationals. The Gold Glove voting is weighted 75 percent by manager Willi Castro Jersey and coaches votes: All 30 skippers vote and up to six coaches from each team make their selections. The other 25 percent is dictated by the SABR Defensive Index, an all-encompa sing advanced defensive metric. The latest update on the metric, from Aug. 11, showed the Cardinals Masyn Winn, the Cubs Dansby Swanson and the Rockies Ezequiel Tovar ahead of the fourth-place Lindor. Winn, Swanson and Tovar are the three finalists. Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor gets the tag on Shohei Ohtani (17) attempting to steal second base in the second inning during Game 1 of the NLCS. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con Hes an elite defender, manager Carlos Mendoza said during Tuesdays workout day at Citi Field, where the Mets will host Game 3 of the NLCS against the Dodgers on Wednesday. I was shocked that he wasnt even in the finals. Most publicly available advanced statistics show Lindor should be in the running. Outs Above Average shows Lindor as the second-strongest shortstop in the majors, behind Swanson. FanGraphs Defensive Runs Above Average also has Lindor trailing only Swanson in the National League. Delivering insights on all things Amazins Sign up for Inside the Mets by Mike Puma, exclusively on Sports+ Thank you By clicking above you agree to the and . Enjoy this Post Sports+ exclusive newsletter! Lindor has won two Gold Gloves in his career, in 2016 and 2019, both with Cleveland. Mike Sarbaugh, now the Mets third base coach and then the Cleveland infield coach, has watched Lindor more than just about anyone and does not believe his defense has dropped off. My initial thought was: I just felt like he should be a finalist, Sarbaugh said. I just think the numbers he has, what hes done on the season I feel at the least he should have been a finalist. Lindor has been consistent in stating that each step of this season has been building toward a World Series and not an individual honor. Francisco Lindor of the Mets turns a double play past Brandon Marsh of the Philadelphia Phillies in the seventh inning during Game 4 of the Division Series at Citi Field on October 09, 2024 Getty Images He likely will not win the National League MVP award, which Shohei Ohtani has wrapped up. His jaw-dropping home runs like the one that punched the Mets ticket in Atlanta and the grand slam against the Phillies that sent his club to the NLCS have included fairly robotic jogs around the bases for a player aspiring higher than winning playoff series or individual honors. Sarbaugh believed there probably would be some disappointment from Lindor, but it would be shoved aside with a bigger goal on the line. If you ask him, hell tell you hes not here to win personal awards, Mendoza said, correctly. He is here to win the whole thing, the World Series. Ryan Jensen Jersey