New York Mets: Robinson Cano is ready to go at spring training
A big key to success for the New York Mets in 2019 is going to be the play of Robinson Cano. To hear him tell it, he’s feeling young and ready to go.
The New York Mets made a blockbuster trade just a few months ago. It brought in the closer, Edwin Diaz, but is also brought in a guy familiar to fans of New York baseball, Robinson Cano.
A few weeks ago, I wondered if bringing around a guy like Cano was the wrong fit, especially for this stadium. Jeff McNeil is already here and put up numbers that play more to a stadium deep in the gaps. With Cano here, McNeil is the one that will have to move.
Like it or not, that is the situation we are in. If the Mets are going to be successful in the 2019 season, Cano is going to have to play to his typical numbers.
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For those scoring at home, his typical numbers are a .304 batting average, 24 home runs and 96 RBI.
According to Cano, he is healthy and feeling like the good old days:
"“I feel like I’m 25.” “I always feel like that,” Cano said. “I never feel like I’m 30. … I feel good, physically and mentally. For me, that’s what matters as a player.”"
That may be all that matters to him, but to the rest of us, it’s fairly important that it shows in his play because Mickey Callaway plans to hit Cano third.
Plenty of evidence exists that Cano will be just fine. He was selected to the All-Star game four times since he turned 30 years old.
He also hit 20+ home runs in three out of five seasons with the Seattle Mariners.
However, his numbers did dip a bit, overall, after leaving the Yankees for the Mariners. After hitting .314 in 2014, he didn’t finish a year over .300 again until 2018 and in that season he only played half the season due to his drug suspension.
Could this be growing evidence that the end is near for Cano? It’s hard to say at this point, but we also can’t say it’s impossible. He is 36 years old. Players go the other way at that age. I’m talking about the downhill direction, of course.
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Whether he wanted to be or not, Robinson Cano has been thrusted into being one of the centerpieces of the Mets lineup. If they are going to perform well and contend in 2019, Cano is going to be a big part of the equation.
Hopefully he is ready for it. Otherwise it could be another season that goes down as lost in the history of the Mets.