Yoenis Cespedes restructured his contract a few days ago after a ranch accident broke his right ankle and kept him out of action in 2019. The Mets will save around $10 million with the new deal, bringing his 2019 salary from $29.5 million to roughly $19 million.
His new contract has drawn trade interest from a few teams. The 34-year-old has not been healthy for quite some time now and has not played since mid-2018. Trading Cespedes won’t be easy, but it’s perfectly doable. Here are some landing spots.
Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore doesn’t just need help. They need anything that moves and throws a baseball. At 34 and with battered heels, Cespedes qualifies for the job. He wouldn’t get many chances to play the outfield in Baltimore as his side of the field is covered by Anthony Santander on a regular basis. He could be used as DH, and that could be good for his health as well as for the battered birds.
The Cuban player did reasonably well last time he was healthy. He hit for .262 with 9 homers and 29 RBI. He hit .292 a year earlier with 42 RBI and 17 home runs. Not bad for Oriole standards. Baltimore needs offense and they need it now Furthermore, if he only focuses on batting, there’s less risk of injury.
In exchange, Mets could get Alex Cobb to help with the bullpen or a few pitchers from the minors. Nothing spectacular here, just function over fashion.
Texas Rangers
Getting Cespedes after acquiring Corey Kluber? It sure sounds crazy, but it makes sense when you think about it. He would serve well as a DH and a good mentor for young left fielders from the Texas farm system. He would most likely do that during training drills to limit injury risk. The former Oakland Athletic could be a decent trading chip if he performs well too.
The Rangers did something similar with another outfielder last year, taking a shot on Hunter Pence. The Mets could throw in Juan Lagares and some cash in the mix as well and they could get themselves the centerfielder they need.
If Mets don’t get anything from trading Yoenis Cespedes, they might as well keep him now that his salary has been trimmed.
Stick With Him If All Else Fails
Trading the two-time Home Run Derby winner won’t be easy. Brodie Van Wagenen knows it, we all know it. These two are quite optimistic scenarios. New York will have to stick with him if any trade possibilities fail. If that’s the case, then restructuring his contract was a smart move. Something we’re not used to seeing from the Metropolitans.