Yoenis Cespedes is returning to the New York Mets. He just signed a 4 year $110 million contract.
The Mets are owned by real estate mogul Fred Wilpon.
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The new contract, which includes a no trade clause, is expected to be confirmed officially on Wednesday. A month ago Cespedes opted out of the remaining two years on his last contract with the Mets which would have paid him $47.5 million. Now he is the highest paid outfielder in baseball history and the second highest paid position player after Miguel Cabrera.
The 31 year old hit 280 and led the Mets with 31 home runs and 86 RBIs last season.
And Mets fans everywhere are rejoicing. Cespedes is a popular player and the Mets are still kicking themselves for not re-signing Daniel Murphy a year ago. Murphy then signed with division rival Washington Nationals and helped to lead them to a division title with a career year.
You won’t want to miss out on the 2017 season. Secure your tickets here >>https://t.co/n3VDPRVdCa pic.twitter.com/43OIg5ek1q
— New York Mets (@Mets) November 30, 2016
New York Mets manager Terry Collins said of Cespedes, “You expect big things each and every time he goes up. He’s one of those guys people pay to see him play. They see him come up to bat and they know he can do something dangerous each and every time up. He’s a special guy.”
The New York Daily News says that the move signals that Fred Wilpon is serious about making the Mets a big spender again. The team’s owner hurt financially for years after being one of the people conned by Bernie Madolf’s ponzi scheme.While he pulled his money out before the end, Wilpon was held responsible by the Federal government for reimbursing much of the money that he earned in profits to the investors who loast everything. He only recently came to a settlement with the government.
The New York Post said that, “For the Mets, the timing of the Cespedes deal couldn’t be better, allowing club officials to focus on other areas of need — mostly the bullpen — as they prepare for the winter meetings in National Harbor, Md., next week.”
A few years ago Mets fans were begging Fred Wilpon to sell the team. Now with the resigning of Yoenis Cespedes they may be grateful that he didn’t.
