If the New York Mets could get a fully healthy Yoenis Cespedes back for the 2020 season, then the whole team changes.
Yoenis Cespedes was one of the New York Mets‘ best hitters before injuries derailed his career. He’s trying to fight his way back from major foot surgery that kept him out for all of 2019.
Cespedes had surgery on both his feet for calcified heels and he’s also coming off a broken foot that he sustained in a wild board accident. Those injuries don’t seem to be slowing the 34-year-old down that much.
Check out Yoenis Cespedes. Running, hitting, and making ridiculous catches. #LGM (via @uSTADIUM_MLB) pic.twitter.com/mdYjaQwm4U
— ESNY (@EliteSportsNY) January 20, 2020
Yoenis Cespedes is back to work and ramping up for spring training. He’s likely extra motivated considering the new terms of his contract that see nearly $20 million in incentives.
When he’s been healthy, Cespedes has been a deadly hitter. In his four years with the Mets, Cespedes has hit .282/.346/.543. His career .889 OPS is currently third all-time behind only John Olerud’s .926 and Mike Piazza‘s .915.
The only problem is the Mets have a logjam in the outfield already. If Yoenis Cespedes comes back healthy it creates a playing time problem. The Mets already need to find time for J.D. Davis, Brandon Nimmo, Michael Conforto, Jake Marisnick, and potentially Jeff McNeil.
Davis could be forced to the bench with little playing time. The Mets outfield defense will suffer because one of Nimmo or Conforto will have to play center field every day and Marisnick’s defense will often go unused in games. It just creates a whole mess.
That said, the mess would be worth the headache. With Cespedes in the lineup, the Mets are a different team. In the two years the Mets had even a nearly full-health Cespedes, they made the playoffs. His bat is special and that shouldn’t be forgotten.
