Well, the masses are all excited about it, and I don't really want to cast negative thoughts.
On one hand, the guy is big and has a "presence" about him that makes the lineup quite a bit
less boring looking. He had a tremendous six weeks, but was pretty much of a no-show for the postseason, as well as the last two weeks of the regular season. I can still picture those strike outs on pitches a foot outside, or high and in. He was apparently playing hurt for much of that time, but how much that had to do with it, I don't know. He is also a bit of a "hot dog" in the field, and doesn't always hustle on the base paths. For the moment though, the team does look better. The outfield situation is a bit crowded though, with Lagares and the newly signed CF, DeAza (around $5.9M) being relegated to defensive and bench roles. Lagares is a former gold glove center fielder whose bat was beginning to come along late last year following a season with elbow trouble. He's not a power threat, but he's a much better fielder than Cespedes. There's Granderson in right and Conforto in left, so getting everyone playing time won't be easy.
As you said, the contract is odd. If he does well, he'll leave after a year, taking his 27M. At least the Mets would get a comp.pick for him, along with a good shot at the playoffs. If he does poorly, we'll have him for two more years at 23.75 each, probably paying for mediocrity. What I haven't figured out is what happens in the "middle ground" so to speak, and what is the middle ground.
Anyway, I think bringing Cespedes back does, at the very least, provide a degree of excitement that could translate into early season momentum. We shall see. |
