The New York Mets were banking on Robinson Cano to be a leader on the field and off of it when they traded away two top prospects (centerfielder Jarred Kelenic, right-hander Justin Dunn) to acquire the 36-year-old second baseman and 25-year-old closer Edwin Diaz from Seattle.

Over 63 plate appearances in Spring Training, Cano slashed .441/.476/.610. While exhibition stats aren’t to be taken with more than a grain of salt, things were most certainly looking up, by all account.

Cano’s Grapefruit League line provided assurance that the 14-year veteran was still capable of producing at a high level. On Opening Day, his missile home run of Nationals right-hander Max Scherzer only gassed the fan base’s collective heads up even further.

The idea of Cano’s still-potent bat residing in the three-hole on a nightly basis with powerhouse bats in Michael Conforto and Wilson Ramos behind him in the Mets’ lineup was and still is an exciting notion.

The only problem is, Robinson Cano hasn’t been hitting. Over 18 games (84 plate appearances), the 36-year-old is hitting .218/.274/.372 with two homers, nine RBIs, six doubles, and 19 strikeouts. Just for comparison’s sake, in 348 plate appearances last season, Cano struck out just 47 times.

Something was amiss and despite the Mets’ continued ability to score runs (108 through Friday is tied for third-most in the majors with the Cubs), Cano’s absentee bat would not bode well for this team’s chances of sustaining their early-season success.

His .263 BABIP compared to his .319 career mark and .329 BABIP last year for the Mariners indicates that things are bound to turn around sooner or later. Luckily for team and player, it appears Cano is now on the verge of breaking out of his funk.

Since April 12, the Dominican native’s gone 8-for-28 with five doubles, four RBI, and a still-alarming seven strikeouts (.286/.333/.464). That’s a start, but Cano’s 3-for-5 night in a win over St. Louis on Friday was arguably the most encouraging sign we’ve seen yet.

Cano’s first-inning double off the Cards’ Adam Wainwright was clocked at 108.7 mph off the bat, his single in the second at 103.8 mph, and his double in the fourth had an exit velocity of 104.5 mph. Once again, things are looking up for Robinson Cano.

Since 2015, Cano’s average exit velocities and launch angles are 90.8 mph and 8.5 degrees, respectively — both above the 87.4 mph and 11-degree MLB averages over that span. This season, his marks stand at 88.3 mph and 14.3 degrees.

A few more frozen ropes sent screaming into the outfield grass at over 100 mph should result in solid increases across those lines, as well as his traditional stats. But, as per Mike Puma’s article in the New York Post on Friday, Robinson Cano will take hits any way he can get ’em.

“I would rather get [a bloop hit than a hard-hit out]. It doesn’t matter the point because you hit it hard [for an out], you don’t get on base,” Cano said. “You get a hit, a blooper or whatever, you get on base for the team. Of those three I hit hard [in Wednesday’s 3-2 loss to Philadelphia] if two of them fall for a double it would be a different game.”

Putting the team ahead of personal success seems to be the overall theme of the New York Mets this season. We’ve heard multiple players reference the mantra over the course of the young season. That’s pretty cool. But Robinson Cano spraying rockets all over the field and continuing his Hall of Fame pace well into his late-30s would be even cooler.