If the Nationals are really honest with themselves, they will admit that Yoenis Cespedes is for them exactly as Sandy Alderson described him for the Mets – a round peg in a square hole.
To be sure, a round peg can actually fit into a square hole. But it requires coming to terms – sooner or later – with the reality that it is not the fit designed for the opening.
If you believe the latest reports, the Nationals have injected fresh drama into a pursuit already surrounded by drama, putting pressure on the Mets with an offer that, at a minimum, will likely force the Mets to spend more to retain Cespedes.
Signing Cespedes has obvious benefits, but would also make the Mets less flexible and diminish their defense going forward with him in CF. But in a market that values sizzle as much as steak, having our best regular season hitter, Cespedes, follow our best post-season hitter, Daniel Murphy, to our chief divisional rival, would generate a PR nightmare. The amount of html that would be spilled in re-vilifying the Wilpons is almost incalculable.
This is not to say the Mets should simply give Cespedes whatever he wants. Because the fit is not any better for them than it is for the Nats. Signing Cespedes would essentially signal the end of Juan Lagares and the all-world defense he displayed in ‘13 and ‘14 (though not in ‘15). It would significantly degrade the most important defensive position on a team loaded with flyball pitchers. And it would also mean our best young hitter Michael Conforto would again be relegated to the bench against lefties.
But, come on. Why would the Nationals, fresh off the acquisition of a player, Ben Revere, who offers catalytic potential at the top of the lineup much like Denard Span, suddenly change their mind and decide to overturn that new lineup construction almost immediately in favor of a lineup with the round peg, Cespedes, jammed into their square hole, CF. This would either reduce Revere’s role or force him to be traded and/or put Jayson Werth on the bench and/or move Harper to CF, or teach Cespedes RF…you get the idea. And Cespedes is not exactly the first guy that comes to mind to fix a broken clubhouse that still includes a pitcher who tried to choke the team’s beloved superstar.
Cespedes has been on the market all winter. If the Nats really wanted him, they could easily have tendered an offer, or at least have been involved in discussions with his agent ROC Nation, before now.
But no, it appears the Nats may be so intent on keeping Cespedes away from the Mets that they are willing to sign him for who knows how long.
Remember, they were in on the bidding for Jason Heyward, which means they were prepared to spend well over $100 million. Would they not spend in that range to steal a right handed complement to their left-swinging superstar Bryce Harper from the grips of the team that crushed them last season?
I certainly hope this concern over the Nats’ do-anything-to-keep-Cespedes-away-from-the-Mets calculation is overblown. That the Nationals’ GM Mike Rizzo will be as level-headed as Sandy Alderson in refusing to break the bank for a round peg to fit into their particular square hole. But I say all this to prepare you for the now live possibility of Cespedes becoming an enemy combatant.
Maybe, as I suspect, the Cespedes/Murphy ship has sailed. 2015 was a mountaintop experience that can not be recreated, because much like 1969, it came out of nowhere. So perhaps, in the end, allowing the Nationals to steal this guy out of tactical revenge, for whatever short term sizzle it might represent, could overcook their steak in the long run.
We can only hope so.
