PORT ST. LUCIE — Yoenis Cespedes sold many of his fancy vehicles this offseason, perhaps a sign the show is over.
The Mets star isn’t even sure how the whole thing escalated last spring, with his daily arrival and departure from the players’ parking lot at Tradition Field becoming the buzz around camp, as he flashed everything from a Lamborghini to a tricked-out jeep.
Cespedes’ vehicles were the biggest story in camp — until he and Noah Syndergaard showed up on horseback.
“I do have more horses than I did last year,” Cespedes said Saturday.
This spring, after receiving a new four-year contract worth $110 million from the Mets, it possibly is all baseball for Cespedes. Even his biggest off-field passion, golf, has been minimized — with Cespedes last week telling manager Terry Collins he played just three times over the winter.
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Cespedes’ commitment to excellence has included participating in Mike Barwis’ physical-conditioning program three days a week.
“[Cespedes] is determined to have a huge year,” Collins said. “He knows he’s now the guy on this team, and I think he’s going to run with it. He is driven right now.”
But Cespedes would dispute the notion his hobbies were a distraction in a season in which he again carried the Mets into the playoffs.
“I don’t think my focus was ever not on baseball,” Cespedes said. “I think last year with the cars, that was something off the field. I think the second I was on the field, that focus was always on baseball, and that is the way it continues to be.”
For the first time in his major league career, the 31-year-old Cespedes has a sense of home. His new contract contains a full no-trade clause, giving Cespedes the kind of stability he has sought during a journey that has taken him from Oakland to Boston to Detroit to New York since 2014.
“I just think he’s relaxed,” Collins said. “Everybody knows he’s a great player. This is where he wanted to be. We didn’t think [the contract] was going to get done, believe me, but I knew he wanted to play here. I just want him to be himself. I just want him to go out and enjoy playing.”
Cespedes will anchor the middle of the lineup and play left field, bringing a bat that produced a .280/.354/.530 slash line last season with 31 homers and 86 RBIs in 132 games.
But Cespedes also battled a right quadriceps injury for much of the summer, culminating in his placement on the disabled list in August. Following Cespedes’ return, the Mets went 27-13 over the last six weeks to clinch a National League wild-card berth.
“This offseason, we focused a lot on my legs,” Cespedes said. “We did a lot of legwork, just to make sure they are as strong as they can be and healthy.”
And if Cespedes wants to arrive on horseback or show off a new set of wheels Sunday before the team’s initial full-squad workout of the spring? Collins said it would not be a distraction.
“They would be distractions if he didn’t get his job done on the field,” Collins said. “Starting at 10 o’clock [Sunday], it’s business. If he comes in here tomorrow on a horse, at 10 o’clock, he has to be on the field and he’s going to get after it. That’s all I really worry about.”
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