After a lackluster first half, it’s hard to find a New York Mets player with more to prove over the regular season’s last two-and-a-half months than second baseman Robinson Cano. It’s only been three games since baseball has returned from its annual midsummer respite, but the veteran player is playing like he indeed has something to prove.

Most of that production came during the final two games of New York’s series against the Miami Marlins. First, it was a two-run homer on Saturday that was the difference in the contest. He followed that up on Sunday with four more hits, which included a double and another home run.

Cano getting back on track and playing closer to preseason expectations probably won’t help the Mets claw back into the playoff race, but it would certainly be better to see that take place instead of watching him continue to be a black hole in manager Mickey Callaway‘s lineup.

However, the question is: how important is a big second half for Cano? What exactly will it accomplish?

The obvious answer is, well, of course it’ll be important. There isn’t a baseball player on this planet who wouldn’t want to enjoy a period of on-field success when given the choice of having it or not. And when remembering how bad Cano’s numbers were through his first 258 plate appearances with the organization, turning things around and salvaging whatever is left of his season is crucial.

Cano went into the break with a .240/.287/.360 line, including four home runs and 19 RBI, which comes out to a 73 wRC+. Following just one series in the second half, the second baseman’s overall stats have improved to a .251/.295/.392 with six home runs and 23 RBI, which comes out to an 83 wRC+.

Would a dominant final stretch change any concerns that surround Cano heading into the latter portion of his contract? Not particularly. Even if he goes on a Christian Yelich-like second-half rampage over the next handful of months, it won’t stop the whispers about how much the Mets owe him through 2023, which is the last guaranteed season of his 10-year, $240 million contract — even though the Seattle Mariners have kicked in a significant portion of his salary, it’s not as if New York isn’t on the hook for an amount that is insignificant.

If the next two-and-a-half months completely erase his first-half struggles, the chatter about Cano entering his age-37 campaign will still be there. Why? Well, because it’s not only New York, but there has also been some concerning trends happening over the last couple years.

Cano is just healthier now and better able to produce at the levels we expect of him, though. That’s something, right? Following his homer on Saturday night, he did mention that the All-Star break gave him an opportunity to get healthier. This mostly pertained to his hand, which was hit by a pitch earlier in the season. Was that more of a freak injury that has impacted his 2019 production? Well, sure, but the issues he had with his left quad (a strain and then tightness) that led to two stints on the Injured List — which also cost him about a month of action — weren’t as much of a freak injury. It’s mostly because of his age in relation to the stage he’s at in his career.

When looking at how he’s performed recently, it looks like there’s at least a chance of Cano finishing off this season strong, saving his overall stats in the process. If that does happen, the organization will probably say there’s plenty left in the tank where that came from (similar to what we saw happen with Jason Vargas last winter, which kinda worked out from an on-field perspective).

The thing is, they have no choice but to say that, hoping it turns out for the better. One huge second half won’t completely negate all the concerns that come with Cano’s future. It certainly won’t hurt, though. The path toward him providing some kind of value to the Mets moving forward starts now. And then it needs to continue at the start of next year. Even then, it probably won’t completely erase the concerns and whispers that will follow him around for the rest of his career at this point, but it’d be a good start.