Cespedes ready to start season

NEW YORK — Yoenis Cespedes is sure he’ll be ready to start the pandemic-delayed season with the New York Mets.

Out of the lineup for almost two years, the 34year-old slugger said Saturday he finally is close to fully recovered from a string of injuries to his feet and legs.

“I don’t have an exact percentage on how I feel, but I feel way better than I did back in March,” Cespedes said through a translator on a video conference call.

When the coronavirus outbreak halted spring training March 12 and pushed back opening day about four months, that gave Cespedes more time to rehab and heal up.

He said he woke up at 5 a.m. for workouts seven days a week during the hiatus.

“I think possibly in the beginning in March I felt like I probably wouldn’t have been ready for the season, I wouldn’t have been ready in time. But I know for certain now that I will be ready and I’m very excited for the season to start in two weeks,” he said.

The Mets open at home July 24 against Atlanta. And with the designated hitter available in the National League this year, Cespedes is a prime candidate for that role during a shortened schedule of 60 games.

The two-time All-Star outfielder missed last season and most of 2018. He had surgery on both heels and then broke his right ankle in a nasty fall at his Florida ranch in a reported run-in with a wild boar.