Left Field: Yoenis Cespedes, New York Mets
2019 Salary: $29 million
It’s probably shocking to hear this, but the Mets’ long-term commitment to Yoenis Cespedes hasn’t worked out so far. Through the first two seasons of his four-year, $110 million contract, Cespedes has suited up for just 119 games, leading to 478 plate appearances. And as he recovers from surgery on both heels, it’s unknown how much time he’ll miss this season.
They have been abbreviated campaigns, but Cespedes has turned to a heavy fly-ball approach since 2017. He posted a 49.6% fly-ball rate in ’17, followed by a 52.6% rate this past year. The outfielder did pair that first number with a 42.2% hard-hit rate, which proceeded to drop to 33.3% in ’18.
He also struggled within the strike zone, evidenced by an elevated swinging-strike rate (13.5%) and strikeout rate (31.8%). It’s worth noting that those struggles happened mostly in April, where he owned a 38.1% strikeout rate. Despite accruing just 39 plate appearances in May before having his season end prematurely, his strikeout rate was back down to 17.9%, which is much more like Cespedes’ career norms.
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