Palladino: Bringing Cespedes Back Was A Historic Move By The Mets
By Ernie Palladino
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If hope was heat, the signing of Yoenis Cespedes already would have melted away the snow mounds from Winter Storm Jonas.
Unfortunately, the ones the Department of Sanitation trucks haven't hauled away will be with us for quite some time. Cespedes is but a mere mortal, whose real heat the Mets can expect no sooner than the onset of springtime.
But if it does indeed materialize as it should -- and it had better after the Wilpons opened the pocketbook to the tune of $75 million over three years -- the fan base can now anticipate a legitimate run at a division title.
If the thought of a signed, sealed, all-but-delivered, locked-and-loaded Cespedes is not a balm to those muscles sore from pushing around tons of snow the last couple of days, then perhaps a brief history refresher will loosen them up.
In agreeing with Cespedes, the Mets created the biggest storm of offseason hope in their history. Never, even in this era where the franchise has been blessed with outstanding young pitching arms in Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and Steven Matz has hope for a postseason berth been so high as with the re-signing of this one power hitter.
The 1984 December trade for Expos catcher Gary Carter, coming on the heels of the in-season trade for Cardinals first baseman Keith Hernandez, didn't create this much of a sensation. That's because the Mets still had holes. Dwight Gooden had made a name for himself as Rookie of the Year with a 17-9, 2.60 mark, and Hernandez, another building block of the 1986 championship team, was already in place.
But no one really knew what Ron Darling and Sid Fernandez would turn into, or that lesser players like Wally Backman, Lenny Dykstra, and Mookie Wilson would support the slugging Darryl Strawberry as well as they did.
That 1984 team was still two years away from greatness.
This team is different. It has already seen Cespedes, and knows what he can do. It has three young, proven winners on the mound in deGrom, Harvey, and Syndergaard. Matz isn't far behind, and Zack Wheeler may even put in his two cents once he returns mid-season from Tommy John surgery.
The lineup, so explosive the last two months of the season thanks to Cespedes' influence, went from shaky to fearsome overnight. Proven power potentially lies in five of the first six hitting positions, with David Wright offering leadership in the No. 2 hole for Curtis Granderson, Lucas Duda, Cespedes, young Michael Conforto, and Travis d'Arnaud.
The so-so signing of Alejandro De Aza doesn't look so bad now that he'll be coming off the bench with Wilmer Flores, Juan Lagares, and Kevin Plawecki. And Neil Walker and Asdrubal Cabrera will offer solid fielding at second and shortstop, and perhaps even more than a little hitting.
Rarely have the Mets ever needed just one piece to bring this kind of hope. Rarer still is the Mets landing that piece in a season where, suddenly, a World Series appearance the year before was deemed a mere appetizer, not the feast itself.
In securing that piece, general manager Sandy Alderson more than justified his Executive of the Year award. In giving Alderson the financial leeway to keep Cespedes away from Washington for less years and less money, the Wilpons shook their cheapskate rep and wiggled their way into the hearts of the fan base.
Cespedes completes the team and the offseason. The makings of a magical season are all there. The National League isn't laughing anymore.
All that remains now is performance.
If Cespedes produces anywhere close to the level of the two months following his July 31 trade, the Mets should cruise into the postseason. After that, who says they can't win the World Series?
It's a thought that should keep every Mets fan warm while he mops up after Jonas.
Follow Ernie on Twitter at @ErniePalladino
