After opting out of the 2020 season, Yoenis Cespedes is planning to play this year, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter link). The former Mets outfielder will hold a showcase for Major League scouts on March 2.
Cespedes played in eight games in 2020, which marked his first big league action since the 2018 season. Cespedes’ final year in New York played out in thoroughly unusual fashion, beginning with the December 2019 news that his contract had been amended due to a Mets grievance in relation to his ankle injury earlier that year. This reduced Cespedes’ 2020 salary to the prorated portion of $11MM, though Cespedes then forfeited almost all of that money due to his decision to opt out as a non high-risk individual. Even his opt-out came in controversial fashion, as the Mets first announced that Cespedes hadn’t arrived at the ballpark prior to an August 2 game, which sparked concern about Cespedes’ whereabouts and well-being before his agent confirmed his client’s decision.
It remains to be seen what sort of free interest the 35-year-old Cespedes will generate after almost two full seasons away from baseball and a long injury history that includes multiple surgeries on his ankles and heels. 2016 was Cespedes’ last year as a true regular, as he appeared in 132 games for the Mets before playing in just 119 games total over the 2017-18 seasons.
When Cespedes has been able to play, it should be noted that he still swung a powerful bat — a .282/.343/.525 slash line and 26 homers over 478 plate appearances in 2017-18. New York used him exclusively as a DH last season due to his leg injuries, however, and it isn’t known if Cespedes will be again limited to DH duty (and thus to only American League teams) going forward. Cespedes did bat just .161/.235/.387 in 2020, though over the small sample size of 34 PA.
Break out the rally boars.
Yeppers.. It’ll be hog wild.
I still love that potential bat but as a Sox fan, been there, done that. I still remember his refusal to play RF. I was actually for the then trade of Lester and foolishly thought Lester was out-pricing himself. As valuable as David Price was in 18, Lester could easily have been the missing piece that year.
Ive said this so many times but if they’d paid Lester fairly and signed Scherzer instead of Price, they never would’ve had to make the Sale trade, would’ve kept moncada and Kopech and would’ve been MUCH better off.
But as the Red Sox do they would have traded them both by now anyway they trade everyone
Maybe if he plays for the Phillies AAA team…Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs! (Yeah, yeah, I know, it’s for the trains and Iron Ore for the steel. I live here.) Seriously, their mascot is BACON!
Signing a cheap deal elsewhere and crushing it would make so much sense for Mets fans…
And I intend on being a billionaire.
Not trying to start a fight but wouldn’t be such a Met thing for him to do great for a different team. Best of luck tho
Not engaging in a fight but….. yeah you’re right
lmao, I don’t think this is a controversial opinion and I think most Mets fans feel the same way. I could see him back in Oakland or in Tampa mashing 25 HR.
If his English is good, Mariners might have interest.
Haha
Wow, went there…hope you’re a fluent spanish speaker kook
vtadave,
it was a…. a … joke, I’m sure.
It was a joke dude. And he was making fun of the Mariners owner’s stupidity, not condoning it or anything. Some people on here…
nah, I get it..it’s just a bunch of bs when ppl like the Mariner’s ex-owner clearly wouldn’t go out of his way to at least try and understand that foreign players already have a hard time trying to communicate the English language..to publicly complain instead of trying on the ex-gm’s behalf is just straight up lazy, when we have online tools on our phone..he even had a translator for Iwakuma and still bitched..just highlighting that some ppl need to practice some empathy
No it doesn’t.
*well
White Sox are a perfect fit imo
Yeah and they could probably get him for the same price as his brother
Yoenis is Yoelkis Céspedes half-brother so he should sign at half the cost!
He can still crush it. Won the game for the Mets last opening day.
Hard Pass.
I want a DH, but that would be the same over-the-hill solution they tried with LaRoche and Encarnacion. He can’t play the outfield anymore either.
Going out on a limb, I think he signs with the Cardinals. I know his defense will be bad, but they also played Ozuna out there for a year.
why would we sign him yes our of production sucks but i’d rather see what we got in some of the kids fighting for a spot out there in st. wish yo the best of luck and makes eat crow but tbh the man is done at this point he is a dh if his bat has any life left in it
Can I interest you in some fresh punctuation? It’s free. I’ve got periods (.), commas (,), question marks (?), and even exclamation point (!). Act now, though supplies are not actually limited.
thanks for the offer but i’ll have to pass. sorry i’m not an english major i’ve always struggled with the rules of english. it’s one of the main reason i’m a carpenter and not a professional writer. dude this is a bb forum not a hs/college english class most people posting on this site are “working class stiffs” like me and we don’t give a f if our post are novel worthy. so instead of trying to be cute about how great your grasp of the english language is than the rest of us and put some real input on bb. i mean i’m pretty sure why most of here posting comments on these articles are posting because of bb not so they can get a free crash course on english 101
You should care, and the rest of us do care. Hardly anyone is going to read your posts or take you seriously if you can’t at least type at middle school level. Why should we care what you have to say about baseball if it takes too much effort just to read it?
your right i should care but being in my mid 30’s and my career choice doesn’t care if my english skills are top notch not gonna invest in a lot of time improving that skill i’m going to invest in skills that keep me employed. if you think my post are hard to read because of my lack of english skills then move on and read another post then
Idiot,.)!(
Stop posting so often. Everyone is sick of seeing your posts on every single article all day long. Go outside for a walk.
quick question who are you talking about posting to often especially if you marty mcrae with a new username who seems to troll every post. who cares if you post on every thread if your putting good bb input for good discussions even if you may talking out your @$$. last i checked this is a place to talk bb and to talk “trash/defend my team” all day. there are a lot of passionate bb fans on here that love bb and keep up with teams that are not their “team”. who are you to say that people that “post on every article” should go on a walk. if the “people who post on every article” it’s the way they unwind after the day let em are there constant posting really ruining your daily life (if it is you are really living a sad life).
says the guy with a username mocking another poster
Ozuna isn’t that bad defensively. Cespedes is more like Jose Martinez levels of incompetent in the field, something no team is willing to put up with for that long on a regular basis.
Not at all. Andrew Vaughn is believed to be in their plans this season. This would mean he and abreu would split first and Dh. And they can rotate at DH until he does come up. Vaughn is believed to be a quick riser that once he is up, will be there to stay
I believe he might be able to get a one year deal from the White Sox. Team is full of his countrymen. He will behave. I doubt he will bail on them.
No way Vaughn will break camp with the big league club. The rules are the rules. He can’t file a grievance like Bryant did. He does not have enough minor league at bats to even claim he’s ready and being held back to manipulate the service time.
@DarkSide830
Cubans Yoenis Céspedes and Yasiel Puig are both available free agents who might be fits for the White Sox depending on how spring camp unfolds and how cheap they can be had. At this point in time each would be looking at a one year minimal AAV guaranteed MLB contract loaded with incentives or possibly even a minor league NRI deal. Because of this likelihood, I’d guess that each will wait a bit longer to assess how team rosters play out. One serious injury to a corner outfielder or DH could make either player more desirable than they appear to be now.
His nickname isn’t “Train Wreck” for nothing…no wait that’s Bauer. Ahhhh, what’s the difference.
Isn’t that already Stroman’s nickname that he shares with Noah S?
No.
Cleveland, ChiSox, KC, Oakland, Texas? It’s tough to see where he fits if he’s expecting anything more than an incentive laden MLB deal with a cheaper team option in year 2 with a minimal buyout.
I think Mitch Moreland has the role Cespedes would play in Oakland. They could platoon of both could play in the field.
KC has Soler. Oakland signed Moreland. Texas traded for Khris Davis. Those teams are probably out. The White Sox with the other Cuban players makes some sense and he would probably come with a cheaper price tag than Puig and they could use a DH. The Indians are out unless he’s willing to sign for a couple of bags of stale Big League Chew…
@rsox He could make a formidable platoon with moreland at DH as moreland historically has clear splits that favor him vs RHP. .. as far as the whitesox, I don’t see a fit. I recently read an article saying they believe andrew Vaughn will debut this year and be up to stay. That would mean he and Abreu share first and DH. Until he debuts, they can rotate players through DH
I doubt any team would pay more than a spring training invite at this point.
Cespedes would not accept any kind of platoon. There is just nothing about this guy that any team should believe would be a positive influence anywhere. I always thought it odd that so many teams let him leave or traded him early in his career.
If I was a contender I would give him a flyer. Team friendly deal of course.
Tampa Bay is always a good landing spot for retreads like this.
Tampa bay or Cleveland. They need cheap,
Lightning in a bottle, type guys.
at 35 and his injury history and being removed from mlb action for 2 years he better be hitting moonshots in his show case and show he still has something i wouldn’t waste the cash or roster spot for him.
Striking out at a 50% clip last year could not have Cespedes value any. For an AL team to use him strictly as a DH a minor league invite to spring training wouldn’t hurt anyone, if he wants guaranteed money than i think most teams pass
Mexican league and then who knows.
You have to figure Puig gets signed before Cespedes, right? More recent MLB playing time, can still cover some ground, actually shows up to games.
@Haloshavenjj I would think Cespedes would come cheaper than Puig and that a team looking for potential DH help would take him on as a minor league non roster invite. Perhaps Oakland could check him out as a platoon option with moreland. Im sure he still has connections there … as far as puig, his antics and declining play likely won’t warrant what he is asking for (even if he is better than cespedes). For these reasons I could see cespedes off the board first. Im not saying it will happen. But I wouldn’t be shocked
He’s making this known now? Shouldn’t he have done this three months ago?
GOOD LUCK
WITH THIS OVERPAID CLOWN
ONLY TIME HE ACTUALLY PLAYS IS WHEN HE’s ON A ONE YEAR DEAL ….
Maybe the DBacks? Peralta and Calhoun both lefty bats, Assuming Locastro is one RH bench bat and perhaps Cespedes could be the other?
He can replace Tim Tebow on the Mets AAA team. They need a new drawing card.
He did the Mets dirty.
How? If anything, he did them a favor by not playing.
Bound for the Lotte Giants!
“I got you an Outfielder. He used to play for the Giants”
“Franklin?”
“Not those Giants”
White sox are the only team that make sense for him. Pair him up with leury Garcia or get back Edwin encarnacion and platoon them
The whitesox don’t make much sense after I read an article the other day about how they view andrew Vaughn as someone that will debut this season. And that he and abreu will split time between first and DH. Until he comes up, they could rotate players.
Also, cespedes could be bound for Oakland. Im sure he still has connections there. He won’t be expensive. Likely a minor league deal with a spring invite will get it done. And he would be used as a platoon partner for moreland at DH. Moreland historically has splits that favor him vs right handed pitchers. Moreland could also spell Olson at first from time to time letting cespedes DH
Next stop Oakland
Waste of time, teach the guy a lesson and no one should sign him
Yeah, that’ll show him! Big bad Cespedes everybody!
Collusion! I just proved it right here!
I remember a few years ago he was praising Bob Melvin as a manager while he was playing for the Mets, so he may want to return to Oakland if they’ll take him to replace Khris Davis.
Oakland did sign mitch moreland to DH. But moreland has clear platoon splits. I could certainly see Cespedes headed to Oakland on a minor league deal with a non roster invite with the expectation that if he makes the roster, he would platoon with moreland and maybe DH if moreland spells Olson at first
@phenomenalajs- agreed was thinking the same thing. The A’s might have to go visit him at his rancho so he can sign with them. There is no longer a “missing report” on Cespedes anymore, now that he no longer plays for the Mets.
Cespedes definitely “falls off the wild toro once in a while”
You think if he started out 20 for 30 instead of 10 for 30 or however low he hit,,do you really think he would have opted out?
Amazing this guy is holding a workout? The guy is a complete moron. Oakland . Boston , Detroit and of course the Mets paid this lazy , no work ethic and selfish player. With the world of talent this guy had was wasted ,arrogance destroyed this man !!!!!!! He played when he wanted to. Some team will sign this disgrace to baseball!!!!!
He did fine in Detroit. Just wasn’t here long.
I hope Sandy gives him another shot.
No no no. Oh no no no.
Why is it the LatinX players are the ones most often accused of being lazy?
Ask Kevin Rather.
Good question. I don’t know if he’s lazy, but he certainly appears to be somewhat less than focused on winning.
He’s gonna sign with Oakland. He’s gone on record saying he’d like to retire in Oakland and play for Bob Melvin again. Calling it now.
Not at all! Often accused? Cespedes is period his own person. His judgment destroyed him . There is a catcher in St Louis called Molina let’s ask him about laziness?
Caveat emptor.
Agreed. Cespedes is a dog with fleas.
Actually, if he shows anything at his workout, the Yankees should swoop in and launch their “Scranton for Stanton” plan. Sign Cespedes to a minor league contract with invite to Spring Training contract. Opt out May 31. Let him hit bombs off the likes of Franklyn Kilome, Corey Oswalt, Daniel Zamora And the like on teams other than Syracuse. Then because both Aaron Judge and Mike/Giancarlo Stanton are both too muscled up to make it through a season, select Cespedes’s contract and have him DH in New York. Old George Steinbrenner would
Live for a move which could make the Mets look bad in the press if it pans out. I named my plan Scranton for Stanton because my money is on him to hit the Injured List well before the opt-out May 31 seadline.
Deadline
Minimal investment. Maximum potential for back page embarrassment. Lets act like the Yankees again!
Does this guy ever play? He has got to be the richest player that hardly ever played in MLB history. What’s he played like twice since his days in Oakland?
*Rusney Castillo has entered the chat*
Jacoby Ellsbury thought that was a low blow.
I think Baltimore should look into Yo, especially if he’s cheap.
Well yippee to that.
I watched many of his games when he was with the A’s. He was electric. Most of the time. As good as the idea may have been to make the Lester for Cespedes trade, that trade and the Smardzja trade disrupted the clubhouse. With the A’s, Cespedes hustled.
Come and DH for the White Sox, or switch that position with Eloy’s LF assignment!
Give him a shot? To keep everybody’s memory green !!!!!! He didn’t come to the ballpark and didn’t answer his phone. Then he says I’m staying out this year because of COVID. What a bunch of crap , and a waste of talent.
Yea, I am a Mets fan and went from worried to pissed that day lol but I’d like to see him somewhere like Baltimore where he could potentially salvage his career. He was such an amazing player to watch as an A and I think as a DH he may have something left in his bat
I can’t see him signing. A major league team would want more than a showcase visit to sign him after 2 years out of the game. That plus his being prone to injuries makes him a non-roster invitee candidate at best. Cespedes’ ego likely won’t let him sign on under a minor league contract, nor will he set his asking price in a range that suits someone who’s been away for 2 years and is that fragile. Oh yea, throw in the whole debacle of his injury incurred hog hunting and most owners will be more than a little conservative in signing him. Only if he signs a deal heavily loaded on incentives do I see him back in a MLB uniform.
He always wanted to return and retire in Oakland, as cheap as Billy bean is, maybe they could let him do there for awhile. The last time I saw him play his bat speed was off , like his injuries were harder on him than what he thought. I honestly don’t think we will see him again , but he is coming to old timer’s day for the Mets in August.