New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes is doing yoga so he can stay off of the disabled list and be more flexible.
Apparently Yo is into Yoga.
New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes has been doing yoga as he tries to improve his flexibility and try to stay off the disabled list.
“This year I did three things differently,” Cespedes said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN). “I ran. Then I did weightlifting, but not so much heavy weights. And then I did yoga trying to get ready for this.”
He added, “With yoga, my muscles are more flexible right now. I used to work out with heavy weightlifting. I had strength, but I wasn’t flexible. Now I’m flexible because of the yoga. … The yoga has been working for me. When I showed up in the last couple of seasons down here, the lower back of my body was very tight. I haven’t felt that yet.”
Before the 2017 season, Cespedes signed a new four-year, $110 millon deal. He hit .292 with 17 home runs and 42 RBIs last year. He was also on the disabled list twice with hamstring strains in both legs.
“He’s taken the first step. He had a great offseason,” Mets manager Mickey Callaway said, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com. “We have to hold him accountable for the things he’s going to do. We’ve got to make sure he’s going about his business the right way, fulfilling all those routines that are going to be necessary for him to go out and play every day. But he’s taken the first, great step toward that.We want Cespedes on the field as much as possible, that’s for sure.”
Cespedes’s ultimate goal is to be an MVP.
“I have goals for long term and short term, but it is the same. I want to be an MVP,” he said, per Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News. “That hasn’t changed. Last season I wasn’t lucky, because I got hurt. But this is my main goal, to become an MVP.”
The Mets struggles last year were in part due to injuries, so having Cespedes flexible and healthy, along with their pitchers, will help them succeed. The question now is, will Cespedes get his teammates to do yoga? That would be a sight to behold.
