Robinson Cano One Strike Away from Lifetime Ban
If you have not heard yet, there is breaking news surrounding Robinson Cano. Cano tested positive for a performance enhancing drug for the second time in his career. The first time was back in 2018 when Cano was with the Mariners. The first offense resulted in a 80 game suspension while today’s news results in a 162 game ban. This means will miss the entire 2021 season and forfeit his $24 million dollar salary. Also, this means that Cano is one strike away from a lifetime ban. If he tests positive one more time, he is banned from baseball for life.
What is the fallout of this Robinson Cano news? Well, I am glad you asked.
The Mets have options
First off, there is an extra $24 million that Cohen can now use to beef up the Mets. For a team that already had a lot of financial flexibility, this is almost unfair. The first question they Mets need to figure out is who is the second baseman on opening day?
Some possibilities for the Mets following Canó's suspension:
1. Move McNeil to second, sign Springer/JBJ to play center, shift Nimmo to left.
2. Move McNeil to second, sign Ozuna to play left.
3. Sign LeMahieu to play second.
4. Use Andrés Giménez at second.
Lots of options.
— Anthony DiComo (@AnthonyDiComo) November 18, 2020
Personally, I am all for option #1 here, but would honestly take any of them. McNeil is an all-star caliber player whether he is playing 3B, LF, or RF, but 2B is probably his best position. That means JD Davis can take over full time at 3B which is his natural position. Like I mentioned before, this really puts the Mets in a position to acquire a big name free agent and that might come in the form of George Springer in CF or even DJ LeMahieu. I think it will be hard to lure LeMahieu away from the Bronx but money talks, and Cohen as A LOT of it.
Big for Universal DH
This will only apply if the DH stays in the National League (which I would be a big fan of). Dominic Smith needs to be in the lineup every single day. He proved this past season that he is worthy of such and more. What is tough is you also have Pete Alonso. What this means though is that one of them simply slides right into the DH role. Smith is the more sure handed first baseman so it might make sense to move Alonso to DH. They made room for Smith is LF but he is not an outfielder. He did make strides as an outfielder this past season, but he is a Gold Glove caliber 1B.
Final Thoughts
Honestly, I ain’t even mad. Cano showed he still had some left in the tank but that could go away very quickly. I would rather let Cohen use the $24 million elsewhere and let guys like McNeil, Davis, and Smith dominate everyday. Andres Gimenez has also shown he is a more than capable everyday player so that is another option. I wouldn’t be surprised if Cano has played his last game in Queens and I am okay with that. The Mets have a great young foundation that is ready to win and they may be better suited without Robinson Cano.
-Pete Chatterton (@Pchat12)