Yoenis Cespedes Still Best Fit for Mets

All of the pundits have written off the possibility of the Mets re-signing Yoenis Cespedes. While recent history shows the Wilpons will not spend what it takes to get him, Cespedes is still the best fit for the Mets. Which means perhaps they will crack open the vault and give Cespedes what he deserves.

The 2015 Mets of the first four months proved that the lineup needed a big bopper. They went out and got Cespedes, and we all know how that worked out and how far they went. They cannot go back to the lineup they had.

With the way the Mets are currently constructed, the only two places to upgrade are shortstop and center field. There are likely to be a few shortstops available, but none that would make a huge difference. No one out there is appreciably better than Wilmer Flores.

Which brings us to center. Denard Span and Dexter Fowler are fine ball players, but would either one really win another pennant for the Mets, the way Yoenis Cespedes did?

Cespedes is really the only player out there who fits the Mets bill. The Mets have a leg up on the competition because he has already played and thrived here. By all accounts he liked playing for the Mets. Could that be enough for Cespedes to offer something of a home team discount? Instead of the six-year, $140 million contract everybody is talking about, would he take $100 million to remain in New York for four seasons?

The Mets have a window of around four years before their young pitchers start pricing themselves out of Flushing. Sandy Alderson certainly knows this. Perhaps he can convince the Wilpons to splurge on the one player who has already shown he can carry the team on his back, and can hopefully carry the Mets to a World Championship or two during that period.

Just don’t count the Mets out of the Yoenis Cespedes chase just yet.