Earlier this week, Mets’ outfielder Yoenis Cespedes celebrated his 34th birthday.
On Twitter, his agency, Roc Nation Sports, tweeted a picture wishing the outfielder a happy birthday with the caption, “The comeback will be better than ever.”
You can interpret that whatever way you want, but to me, it seems as though Cespedes is going to do everything in his power to return to baseball this year.
Cespedes signed a four-year deal with the Mets prior to the 2017 season, but has been injured a majority of the contract. In 2017 and 2018, Cespedes played in just 119 games total, and was sidelined the entirety of the 2019 season.
The Cuban slugger underwent surgery in 2018 to remove calcification from both of his heels, a recovery time that usually lasts 8-10 months. Then, during the season, Cespedes reportedly fell on his ranch and injured his ankle which put any hopes of returning in 2019 on the back burner.
Since then, we haven’t heard much of anything about Cespedes from the team or the media.
If he does return, you have to figure he will be a mainstay in the lineup barring his health. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as I think people sometimes forget how good Cespedes was when he was on his game.
Apart from Cespedes, Michael Conforto and Brandon Nimmo are slated to assume starting roles in the outfield. Prior to being fired by the team, former manager Mickey Callaway said that as of that moment, J.D. Davis was penciled in to be the team’s left fielder in 2020.
Of course, should Cespedes return, things will change. J.D. Davis will likely be relegated to a utility role while Jeff McNeil holds down third base.
