Yoenis Cespedes spent the entire offseason bulking up and trying to be the Hulk. It appears Yoenis has learned as lesson. Cespedes told the NY Post that he wants to be more athletic and flexible.
“I want to become more flexible, more athletic, have less bulk [in my legs]. I want to do less weight lifting. I’m going to do some different things, I want to do yoga, more stretching. I want to be lighter. I want to come back around 210, lose about 15 pounds.”
He specifically mentions trying to lose at least 15 pounds, similar to what Michael Conforto did this past offseason.
Cespedes has missed 45 of the 99 games the Mets have played thus far. It seems to be a weekly incident where we read that Cespedes might have tweaked something in his body. Cannot speak for everyone, but I definitely hold my breath when Cespedes runs at full speed after a ball in the outfield or on the bases.
Curtis Granderson has done well to manage his injuries even though he is one of the older players on the team. He told the NY Times that the key for him is to stay hydrated.
Looking forward to 2018, the Mets need to be able to count on Cespedes to be a key piece. They have too many other holes to fill on the roster for them to be finding a quality backup for their $110 million dollar man. All things considered, he is hitting .283/.335/.510 with a .352 wOBA and 119 wRC+ which is not bad at all but Mets fans have come to expect more from him.
Hopefully the Mets have a rejuvenated and angry Cespedes come 2018. We can certainly his high caliber bat in the lineup and it will go a long way in giving the Mets a formidable lineup. Every Mets fan and player know the caliber of player that he is when healthy. Step one, let him get healthier.
