It was interesting to read how Yoenis Cespedes responded when Marly Rivera of ESPN asked him if he was happy playing center field for the Mets.
“If I had the choice, I would stay in left field. But I will play where the team needs me. If they want me to play center field, I’ll play center field, and I’ll do the best I can,” Cespedes responded.
“When I came here [to MLB] in 2012, I started playing center field. But that same year I moved to left field. That was a little difficult, but I got used to it already. Now I feel much more comfortable in left field. But my mind, and I’ve always said, if you are a good outfielder, you can play most positions.”
Before signing Cespedes to a three-year, $75 million deal with the Mets in February, Assistant GM John Ricco and GM Sandy Alderson really pushed the issue that Cespedes was not a center fielder with Sandy even referring to him as a square peg.
The bottom line is that at least for this season, Cespedes will play center field everyday when there’s a right-hander on the mound, and give way to Juan Lagares and slide over to left field with a LHP on the mound. In those instances, Michael Conforto will move over to right field while Curtis Granderson sits against most lefty starters.
Cespedes will improve the more he plays in center and he fine tunes his instincts. And his bat will more than make up for any defensive deficiencies – which are quite overblown. This is a non issue in my opinion.
