Ed Delany, MMO
Mets infielder Gavin Cecchini has the odds stacked against him to break camp with the team, but he’s not letting that stop him.
In Monday’s 8-7 loss to the Houston Astros, Cecchini went 2-for-2 including a two-run bomb in the seventh inning that gave New York a then 6-5 lead.
Cecchini has come into camp bulked up with a brand new swing, but realizes the challenges of having several players in front of him on the depth chart.
“It is tough, because I believe I should and can be a starter in the big leagues and help a team win,” Cecchini said. “It’s just kind of a tough situation with all the infielders and veterans that we have right now and I feel that I am big- league ready at this moment, but that stuff is out of my control. I can’t control whether I make the team or not.”
The 24-year-old was selected by the Mets in the 2012 draft, but has failed to live up to the hype up to this point.
In 77 plate appearances last year with the big club, he hit just .208/.256/.273 with one homer and seven RBI. His defense was also poor in the minor leagues, according to scouts.
This offseason, he worked extensively on kicking his poor tendencies.
“I got into some bad habits with that, coming out of my legs and throwing straight over the top,” he said. “I got back to doing what I’ve always done whenever I got drafted when I was doing great defensively. I got back to working on arm angles.”
Though it is an extremely small sample size, the way Cecchini drove the ball on Monday is something he hopes he can carry on throughout the year.
“That’s what he’s been working hard on is driving the ball,” manager Mickey Callaway said. “He did some good things to his body in the offseason and (hitting coach) Pat Roessler and he have been working really hard on getting some air under the ball and driving the ball a bit more.”
Going on six years after being drafted, now is make or break time for the infielder. If he really has what it takes, 2018 is the time to show it.
