When Yoenis Cespedes won the Home Run Derby at Citi Field in 2013, the player he defeated in the final round was Bryce Harper. Harper technically won yesterday’s home run battle, 2-1, but Cespedes and the Mets won the game and the sweep over Washington. Now the Nationals look done, and deadline pickup Cespedes is being talked about as an MVP candidate over Harper.
Cespedes hit 32 homers in his Derby win, and yesterday’s game-winner off of hapless Washington reliever Drew Storen was his 32nd homer of 2015. He’s hit 14 as a Met, along with 36 RBI and 33 runs in just 36 games.
So far, Cespedes has been far more valuable to the Mets on the road than at home. At Citi Field, he is hitting .241 with four homers and six RBI in 15 games. But check out his road numbers: .354 BA, 10 homers and 30 RBI in 21 games. So there’s a bright side in the Mets probably not having home-field advantage in the playoffs.
I originally wrote the previous sentence as “if and when the Mets make the playoffs,” but Squawker Lisa has complained about my newfound cockiness, so I removed the “if.” Deal with it, Lisa, the Mets are going to be playing in a real playoff series, while the Yankees look like they will be in a one-game elimination against Cole Hamels and the Texas Rangers. But at least Stephen Drew has gotten his average over the Mendoza line.
But forget about the Yankees, at least until the Subway Series in a week. Forget about the Matt Harvey circus. All that matters is Cespedes, Cespedes, Cespedes!
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