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Palladino: Mets Must Willingly Pay To Bring Cespedes Back -- Or Else

By Ernie Palladino
» More Ernie Palladino Columns

There are no two ways about this for the Mets.

Either re-sign Yoenis Cespedes or build a new stadium after their constituency tears down Citi Field in protest of his leaving.

While it is hoped that no one will make like Donald Trump and lay waste to everything if the Cespedes thing goes sideways, Mets management should be stowing away some dough right now as opt-out time for the slugger grows ever closer.

The one blameless person in all this is Cespedes himself. Though few would sniff at the $23.75 million the Mets would pay him if he decided not to explore the free agent market, Cespedes would be a fool not to wade into those waters and the potential bidding war that awaits.

If Sandy Alderson and the owner Wilpons don't outbid teams such as the Giants, Angels and perhaps even the Yankees, it will be their own fault. Moreover, if they think going after Toronto slugger Edwin Encarnacion would provide an adequate reaction to letting Cespedes go elsewhere unchallenged, then they would not only be lying to their fans, but to themselves as well.

MORE: 6 Possible Replacements Should Yoenis Cespedes Leave The Mets

It's going to take a pile of deceased presidents to land the man that has made the Mets' offense go over the past season and two months.

According to the Daily News, the Giants have a willingness to spend money, as exhibited by last year's pickup of pitcher Johnny Cueto for $130 million over six years.

While it's unlikely anyone would hand the 31-year-old Cespedes such a long contract, a four-year deal at the same amount would not be inconceivable. The Post reported that the $132 million Justin Upton received from the Tigers in a six-year deal last offseason could form the framework for Cespedes' new deal, albeit a shorter one in years.

Four years, $130 million might do it here, though, assuming no one wants to commit to him for five years. And Cespedes might well take it. As noted several times in the past, he likes it here. The fans thrill to his home run power. The bevy of top-flight golf courses in the immediate area more than adequately feeds his well-known appetite for the sport.

But there will be no hometown discount here. Make no mistake, Cespedes won't leave a nickel on the table. In that sense, he is not unlike any other star looking at a huge free agent windfall. So they had best be willing to pony up for a guy who in 189 games in a Mets uniform has belted 48 homers, driven in 130 runs, hit for an average of .282 and slugged at a career-high .554 rate.

Well-documented is the fact that the Mets' offense doesn't go without Cespedes. What's more, they have no one else like him.

LISTEN: Mike Francesa Says Mets Must Pony Up To Bring Back Cespedes

Curtis Granderson no longer possesses the explosive potential anymore. Jose Reyes is an excellent leadoff hitter, but he won't carry an offense like Cespedes can. Asdrubal Cabrera has power and plays a great shortstop, but he's no Cespedes. Lucas Duda will enter spring training fully recovered from the back injury that cost him most of last year, but he's too streaky to provide consistent power and average.

In a perfect world, Alderson and the Cespedes camp would agree on a four-year deal in the next couple of days to short-circuit any ride on the free-agent merry-go-round. But that's not likely to happen, considering the potential amount of teams and pile of cash Cespedes is looking at.

The Giants ranked 28th in homers last year, and with an anticipated opening in left field, will probably go after Cespedes hard.

The Angels would love to have a complement like him for Mike Trout. If Cespedes was so comfortable in New York, imagine how he'd fit in with the Dodgers and all the Hollywood glitz and glamour. And that franchise has never been adverse to spending money.

The competition will be stiff, but if the Wilpons are serious about contending for the playoffs on a yearly basis, they must allow Alderson to open the vault for a player who first carried them to a National League pennant, and then to a wild-card spot.

Without Cespedes, they go nowhere.

Follow Ernie on Twitter at @ErniePalladino

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