Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto have reached the strange place only big-market stars can find themselves: even the harmless stuff gets turned into a headline.
For the Mets, that has meant every glance, every pause and every public comment between the two has been treated like evidence. The speculation has only grown louder over the last year and a half, with the club’s fall in 2025 and struggles in 2026 getting tied to the idea that the two stars are not exactly best friends.
The problem for both players is that there’s almost no way to shut it down. Lindor’s “no comment” when asked about waiving his no-trade clause can be read however people want.
Soto, meanwhile, drew attention just for taking a picture with the New York Yankees All-Stars, which somehow became another round of chatter about him missing his old team even though the players in the photo had barely shared the field with him. Ben Rice, for example, accounted for all 50 of those games in a part-time role while hitting .171 in 2024.
That kind of suspicion has only gotten stronger because the story has been denied and admitted to at different points. The result is a cloud of uncertainty that has fans and critics alike wondering what the truth is.
Soto added a little more fuel before the Home Run Derby when he was asked which Mets young player he thought could be at the All-Star Game next year.
"All of them. I think Benge, Ewing, they have so much talent. I know Lindor is going to be back up again."
That answer at least included Lindor in a positive light, and putting over a teammate like that matters, even if it doesn’t erase the noise around the relationship.
The SNY Mets X account has also kept the conversation alive by highlighting tiny moments, like Lindor waiting for Soto on the infield after a diving catch. What should be routine has become part of the ongoing narrative because every interaction is being watched so closely. How long they shake hands or how quickly one reacts after the other makes a play now gets treated like a clue.
Francisco Lindor with props to Juan Soto after his diving catch pic.twitter.com/V4qpYEjCK6
- SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) July 8, 2026
Then there’s Mike Francesa, whose comments only added more smoke. He said the Mets will try to trade Lindor, and he also claimed the relationship got off to a bad start because Lindor did not send Soto a welcome text. According to Francesa, Lindor was the one key Mets player who didn’t reach out.
Mike Francesa had this to say regarding the Mets shortstop. pic.twitter.com/vXeHBfHDhq
- New York Post Sports (@nypostsports) July 7, 2026
The Mets seem to run into drama almost every year, and this has become the loudest version yet. The Lindor-Soto storyline may be exaggerated, but it has also become impossible to ignore.
Whether the relationship is truly strained or just being overanalyzed, both players now have to be careful with everything they say and do. Otherwise, the speculation will keep doing the talking for them.
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