Cano has no plans to scale back number of games
PORT ST. LUCIE – Robinson Cano isn’t preparing for a 130game season. Even if a compressed schedule would preserve his veteran body for the long haul, he has no interest in setting pint-sized goals that would only alter his mindset and lead to fewer at-bats, not as many plays in the dirt and ultimately less baseball.
Cano, set to enter his age-37 season, just isn’t there yet. When it comes to how often or how little he should play, he’d rather listen to his body during the year rather than begin spring training with adjusted intentions.
“I always say it’s good for you to be able to play 180 games, because I think everyone can play 162 games,” he said on Friday after his Grapefruit League debut. “If you prepare for that, then you’re counting yourself out right away. So you have to prepare yourself to be able to play in the playoffs and World Series.”
The veteran second baseman batted third as the designated hitter in the Mets’ 3-2 win over the Cardinals. He drew a walk in his first at-bat of spring and flew out to center field in his second at-bat before retiring for the day. He expects to DH in one more exhibition game before making his spring debut at second base on Tuesday against the Marlins.
Cano spent the offseason strengthening his legs and said, if he’s fully healthy in 2020, he’s got plenty of baseball left in the tank.
“Your body is always going to tell you how you feel,” Cano said. “I never want to get into the situation where my body says you gotta rest or you need to work more. That’s why I always learned from the best when I came up and watched all the things that they did — why they lasted so long, why they played so good at an old age and kept themselves in the game.”
Mets manager Luis Rojas echoed his second baseman in that he can’t put a number on how many games Cano should be prepared to play this year. He just wants Cano to feel good about his health and contribute to wins. But in order for his body to feel fresh over the next seveneight months, Rojas will need to work with Cano to prudently disperse his offdays in the season.
“We talked about that,” Rojas said. “Our goal is to leave camp healthy and strong and we’ll go by games.”
STRO’S SWEET ESCAPE
Marcus Stroman is back on his five-day routine after pitching his second start of spring on Friday. He held the Cardinals to one earned run on two hits with one walk and one strikeout across two innings. The right-hander sprinkled in his sinker throughout his abbreviated outing and induced four groundouts.
Stroman’s blemish came on a solo home run to Paul Goldschmidt in the top of the first inning. The sixtime All-Star first baseman pounced on a pitch left over the plate. Stroman said he ramps up his velocity toward the end of exhibition games while primarily focusing on the location of his sinker.
The right-hander gracefully escaped a no out, bases-loaded situation in