Waiting for Cespedes:
The Mets expect their power-hitting outfielder to return to MVP status, but first they must hang on until he can join them sometime this summer.
After Yoenis Cespedes helped the New York Mets to the playoffs in 2015-16, the team rewarded the outfielder with a lucrative four-year, $110 million deal. They envisioned Cespedes being the linchpin in the lineup he had been through his first 189 games with the organization.
Halfway through the deal, the plan hasn’t come to fruition.
Cespedes has only played in 119 of a possible 362 games, and there is uncertainty about just how much he can produce in the 2019 season if it all. The 33year-old underwent surgeries on both heels last year, and is expected to be sidelined through at least June.
Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen has maintained a positive outlook, believing Cespedes can still be a dynamic middle-of-the-order bat.
“We expect him to be an MVP-caliber player when he comes back,” Van Wagenen said earlier this month. “And I know he does as well.”
Cespedes’ status looms over the team since his salary has affected the team’s offseason plan, and the roster lacks outfield depth.
Despite having the capability to sign both players, the Mets passed on both Bryce Harper and Manny Machado in part because of Cespedes. While they can’t guarantee that Cespedes will play a certain amount of games, his $29 million salary is on the books regardless.
The team does have an insurance policy on his contract.
“We do have a $29 million outfielder on the roster that we hope to come back at sometime this year and be productive,” Mets COO Jeff Wilpon said in January about the team’s decision to not pursue either Machado or Harper.
With Cespedes likely shelved for at least half of the year, the team’s outfield will feature Michael Conforto, Brandon Nimmo, Juan Lagares and Keon Broxton.
Conforto and Nimmo both should have strong seasons, but Lagares is injury prone and Broxton struggled in 2018. Should Nimmo or Conforto suffer an early-season injury, the Mets will have to use both Lagares and Broxton more often than they should.
Infielder Jeff McNeil will be trained in the outfield during spring training, but he has barely played the position since his last collegiate season in 2013.
Van Wagenen often said this offseason that he wanted to eliminate the “ifs” regarding the roster, but the team’s outfield situation is filled with ifs.
If the group stays healthy, though, the Mets could potentially receive a boost should Cespedes return and be productive. Cespedes produced an .821 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in 38 games while battling injuries last season, plus he contributed nine homers.
However, given his age and the Mets’ unfortunate history when it comes to injuries, it’s not a given that Cespedes can be a trade deadline acquisition of sorts.
Cespedes might be one of the players that makes or breaks the Mets season.
“We believe in him, we believe he can make a high impact and we hope that he will in the coming season and beyond,” said Van Wagenen, who represented Cespedes before becoming an executive. “We are confident that he will be able to come back.”