CLEVELAND — Francisco Lindor still remembers the spot where the Chicago Cubs players and their families celebrated once they vacated the field.

The Cubs had just won Game 7 of the 2016 World Series. Cleveland had just fallen short. They had come so close — oh, so agonizingly close — to their ultimate goal, only to have it taken away by a November rain delay and Ben Zobrist.

After partying on the field and taking pictures in the early hours of the morning, Cubs players, coaches and families continued to celebrate outside the visiting clubhouse along a corridor in the bowels of Progressive Field.

It was almost in that exact spot that Lindor, nearly eight years later, met with reporters before Monday's game, which happened to be his first return to Progressive Field since the blockbuster trade that sent him to the New York Mets after the 2020 season.

Lindor said above anything else he remembers the "winning" that those Cleveland teams did from 2016 to 2020. He remembers the champagne in clubhouses in Detroit, Boston, Toronto and Cleveland. He remembers the crowd rallying behind them with towels in October.

But he also thinks about Game 7. And he thinks about the time the champagne never flowed.

"A lot. A lot. A lot," Lindor said. "Walking down this hallway, actually right around where I'm standing now, it was where their whole families and players were celebrating. So, yeah, I think about it a lot. Probably until I win one, but maybe after, I'l still think about it. I think that's just part of the journey."

Lindor was a mammoth piece of Terry Francona's Cleveland teams that won three consecutive American League Central titles (2016, 2017, 2018), the AL pennant in 2016 and another playoff berth in 2020. Cleveland was led out of a rebuild and into a World Series contender just as Lindor was becoming an MVP-candidate talent at or near the top of Francona's lineups.

Those teams, led by Lindor, Corey Kluber, Michael Brantley, Carlos Carrasco, Cody Allen, Andrew Miller, Yan Gomes, Jason Kipnis, Jose Ramirez and others accomplished a great deal. But they all left — except for Ramirez and in a roundabout way, Carrasco — without completing the end goal, which they knew they had the talent to accomplish.

"I know we didn't finish the ultimate goal," Lindor said. "We didn't close it out, but just the experiences of winning and pouring champagne on each other and creating memories with teammates, their families, our whole entire family, front office, it was a great experience."

The Guardians went on to beat the Mets 3-1 in Monday night's game. Lindor went 0-for-4 with a strikeout and received a mostly positive reaction from the crowd when he was introduced for the first time.

Lindor also noted that, now as a visiting player, he of course had to take an alternate route to get into Progressive Field. For years, it had always been through the same door.

"I usually come through the players' parking lot, but this time came through a tunnel, so it was different," Lindor said. "I missed it. I missed it. This was my home for a while, and it feels great to be here."

Evaluating the Cleveland-New York Mets trade of Francisco Lindor

But who won the trade?

Cleveland's trading of Lindor was a seismic move that altered the franchise. Lindor noted Monday he understood the team's position, and since they couldn't agree "to a number," he was glad that he was dealt to the Mets.

Cleveland traded Lindor and Carrasco to New York in exchange for a package that included Andres Gimenez, Amed Rosario and prospects Isaiah Greene and Josh Wolf.

Trades, of course, can't truly be evaluated for years after the original deal is completed. So the only way to view it is as a deal that is still being played out for both sides.

But, at this point, the trade can be viewed in terms of performance and dollars.

Since being traded to the Mets, Lindor has accrued 16.8 fWAR (meaning he's been worth 16.8 more wins to his team than the average replacement player). Among qualified position players, Lindor ranks 12th in fWAR since the beginning of 2021. Ramirez is eighth over that same time with 18.2 fWAR, which doesn't involve the trade but is notable nonetheless.

Carrasco gave the Mets 2.3 fWAR, as he struggled quite a bit after the trade, both in performance and health, which is one of the reasons why he had to earn a spot on Cleveland's pitching staff this spring in his own return to Progressive Field.

Using Lindor's salaries the last few years and about one third of what he'll be owed in 2024 (since both teams are approaching the 50-game mark this season), and using Carrasco's earnings with New York from 2021 to 2023, the Mets will have, to date, received 19.1 fWAR and will have paid them roughly $118.5 million.

Evaluating Andres Gimenez and Cleveland's return for the Francisco Lindor trade

Now for Cleveland's side of this deal.

Andres Gimenez, since making his Cleveland debut, has accrued 12.1 fWAR, which earns him a top-35 ranking among all position players since the beginning of 2021.

Amed Rosario, before being dealt to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Noah Syndergaard, gave Cleveland roughly 5.9 fWAR over about 2.5 seasons. Syndergaard was largely a replacement level player during his short sting with Cleveland.

It remains to be seen what Greene and Wolf give the Guardians at the major league level, if anything. But at the moment, the future doesn't seem to be too bright. Wolf hasn't progressed much statistically and has a 5.84 ERA with Lake County. Greene struggled with Lake County last year (.563 OPS) and is again at that level in 2024.

So, in total, the Guardians have received a combined 18.0 fWAR from players acquired in the Lindor deal. But a major difference is the money that has been paid out for that value.

The Guardians will have paid Gimenez (again, using about one third of his 2024 salary, as that's in the ballpark of what the Guardians will have owed him to date), Rosario (while in Cleveland), Syndergaard (that trade included a cash component), Wolf and Greene roughly a combined $16.5 million.

Who won the Francisco Lindor trade between Cleveland and the New York Mets?

With Rosario no longer in Cleveland, Carrasco no longer in New York (and actually in Cleveland again), and Wolf and Greene struggling to advance toward the big leagues, the future of this deal largely becomes Gimenez vs. Lindor.

At present, the Mets have received 1.1 more fWAR, but they've also paid roughly $102 million more for it.

Largely due to Gimenez's All-Star 2022 season in which he finished sixth in American League MVP voting, Rosario's contributions before being dealt and Carrasco struggling to find his footing in New York, it'd be hard to argue that this trade hasn't worked out a bit more for Cleveland considering the financial component of it all.

Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Threads at @ByRyanLewis.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Looking back at the Cleveland Guardians' Francisco Lindor trade