Francisco Lindor gives hilarious reason why he wants Juan Soto on All-Star roster 

The New York Mets will have Francisco Lindor, Edwin Diaz and Pete Alonso take the field in Atlanta during this season's All-Star Game. Since the rosters were announced, there has been plenty of talk surrounding Juan Soto's exclusion.

Soto struggled in the early months of the year. He hit .232 in April and .219 in May with 25 RBIs and eight home runs. But since then, he has become the player that the Mets spent $765 million on in the offseason. Soto hit .322 in June with 11 home runs and 1.196 OPS.

The Dominican has had a strong start to July as well, leading New York's charge in their series win against the New York Yankees and driving the go-ahead run in Tuesday's 7-6 win against the Baltimore Orioles.

After Soto's 10th-inning heroics, Francisco Lindor shared his thoughts on Soto missing out on the Midsummer Classic. According to him, Soto's standards have put doubts in people's heads about his quality.

"If I had a slow start like him, I'll take that any year. To his standard, I think he didn't get to the start that he wanted. With that being said, he's still elite," Lindor said.

There's an added incentive for the Mets player who will represent the National League team. With the All-Star Game set to be played in Atlanta, the home of the Mets' arch rivals, their appearance is set to rile up the crowd. Soto, himself, has also been part of the Washington Nationals in the past.

"I hope ends up making it. I hope he gets the recognition he deserves. He belongs in the All-Star Game. Hopefully there's an opportunity for him to be in it so the 4 of us can go and get booed," Lindor joked.

Carlos Mendoza is hopeful Juan Soto makes it to Atlanta

Juan Soto missed out on the fan ballot in the first phase of voting. Ronald Acuna Jr., Pete Crowe-Armstrong and Kyle Tucker were picked in the first phase. This made it tougher for him to get through the Players' Ballot that selected the reserves.

However, Acuna has reportedly been sidelined due to lower back tightness, the Braves have reported. A final decision on his availability will be made on Wednesday.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza is hopeful that Soto makes it in the event of Acuna missing out.

“He’s an All-Star for us,” Mendoza said postgame via MLB.com. “Frustrating, obviously. But I’m hoping in the next couple of days … he makes it. He’s an All-Star."

Soto's return to form has been so good that he leads the National League Offensive WAR charts (4.0), eclipsing even Shohei Ohtani.