Palladino: Mets Need To Ensure Return of Yoenis Cespedes After This Season
By Ernie Palladino
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Based on recent events, it has become apparent that the Mets are not going away in their chase of the National League East crown.
A four-game sweep of the Cubs and the stirring July 4 comeback against the Marlins is all one needed to realize the Mets will be in this fight until the end. Despite setbacks like their 5-2 streak-busting loss Tuesday against Miami, there are still plenty of positive moments ahead of them, moments that could pile up into a division title.
But it also confirmed one other thing.
They need to guarantee themselves that Yoenis Cespedes will be with them past this year. And the sooner they get that done, the better.
It's not like anyone had serious doubts about how Cespedes affects the lineup. Sure, he's gone through his slumps. A slow start and a power dropoff in June had some people concerned that they had seen the best of him.
But there he was during the five-game winning streak, not only producing clutch hits like the eighth-inning, two-run double that capped the Mets' biggest comeback of the season, from 6-0 down to an 8-6 victory Monday, but also adding timely offense to the Cubs series.
It was no surprise then that Cespedes, who was named a starter in the All-Star Game on Tuesday, provided one of the Mets' two runs Tuesday with his 21st homer in a 2-for-3 outing. He's hitting .304 now, and an even .400 in his last eight games. That includes 12 hits, four homers and seven RBIs. The fact that he scored four of his eight runs while hitting .375 (6-for-16) against the Cubs just proved his consistency.
Other players may certainly gain their time in the spotlight. Wilmer Flores' franchise record-tying six hits in Sunday's outburst highlighted a 14-run explosion that finished off the Cubbies. Travis d'Arnaud appeared to be heating up after his three hits, which included a fourth-inning homer that started the whole comeback against the Marlins on Monday.
Curtis Granderson has battled a right calf strain of late, but still came up with a first-inning homer Sunday that touched off the day's 14-run cannonading. His homer against the Marlins continued the early comeback effort an inning after d'Arnaud went deep.
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Manager Terry Collins' use of the word "resilient" in describing the Mets' season so far was more than accurate. But only a few short weeks ago, they looked anything but during a 12-15 June swoon. While the rest of the offense struggled, Cespedes still hit .315 during his power brownout. And that was despite a wrist injury at the end of the month.
The Mets have had some other heroes pop up in July, and will have others in the future. But the point is that Cespedes has proved beyond a doubt that he is and will likely remain the Mets' most consistent player.
In a future that will undoubtedly involve a good bit of change, making Cespedes' return a sure thing wouldn't be a bad thing. With David Wright's career up in the air, the uncertain nature of comebacking third baseman Jose Reyes' status past this year, Granderson entering his contractual walk year and an undetermined left field situation, it would ease a lot of people's minds if Sandy Alderson tinkered a bit with Cespedes' contract to definitively lock him down after this season.
As it currently stands, Cespedes could easily use his opt-out clause if some money cow owner offers him a greener environment than the $47 million pasture that lies in the last two years of his Mets' deal.
He does like it in Flushing. The bevy of golf courses within a short drive of Citi Field more than adequately satisfy his off-field passion.
The fans love him.
Clearly, New York and Cespedes have fit like hand in glove since the two-month span that saw him single-handedly spark a bumbling, Quadruple-A lineup into the MLB's most prolific offense.
Cespedes has shown enough since that pennant drive to be considered an essential piece in this organization's future.
They need him.
Alderson should lock Cespedes down for good and leave no doubt about his return to Citi Field next year and beyond.
Follow Ernie on Twitter at @ErniePalladino
