Mets' Francisco Lindor, Eduardo Escobar 'clean' Buck Showalter during pitching changes

The New York Mets headed into the Monday afternoon home game against the Miami Marlins at 44-24 and with a 5.5-game lead over the second-place Atlanta Braves in the National League East standings. Thus, one can't blame members of the Amazins for having some unique fun at ballparks as summer approaches. 

For his newsletter published on Monday, Anthony DiComo of the official MLB website noted how star shortstop Francisco Lindor and third baseman Eduardo Escobar have sparked a tradition of "messing" with manager Buck Showalter during pitching changes. Per DiComo, the habit began when Lindor noticed a crumb on Showalter’s jacket when the boss made a journey to the mound in April. Escobar brushed the debris off, and the two can now be seen unzipping Showalter’s jacket or otherwise harassing the manager whenever he's on the bump waiting for a relief pitcher to enter a game. 

"Now, we clean him off every time he comes to the mound," Lindor explained about the antics. "It’s funny. It’s funny to see him get a little bit uncomfortable at times." 

It also doesn't hurt that Lindor is experiencing a better season than his debut campaign in the Big Apple. Per ESPN stats, the four-time All-Star selection began the final day of spring tied for fourth in all of MLB with 52 RBI.