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Baggo skill cues underhand throw5/27/2023 ![]() Since 2012, Cespedes has compiled 26 outfield arm runs saved, which measures how many runs above average a fielder by preventing runners from advancing - tied with Alex Gordon for the most in baseball, according to the analytics company Baseball Info Solutions. “He could pitch professional softball,” said Ariel Prieto, a friend of Cespedes’s who worked as his interpreter in Oakland.Ĭespedes’s skill with the underhand throw is another testament to his arm strength, which will be a weapon for the Mets in the pennant race. Bones watched in disbelief as Cespedes fired an array of true fastballs, curveballs and knuckleballs. Michael Conforto, a rookie left fielder, added, “Keeps you on your toes.” One day before batting practice, Cespedes sauntered to the bullpen and began pitching underhand in front of Ricky Bones, the bullpen coach. It’s not your typical Tim Wakefield knuckleball.” “It’s really good,” said reliever Jerry Blevins, who was Cespedes’s teammate in Oakland for two seasons. Between innings, when outfielders play catch to stay loose, Cespedes sometimes surprises his teammates by throwing a knuckleball without warning - another habit he started in Oakland. But when Cespedes sprints around the corner, with his legs churning like a running back and his oversized chain flapping against his chest, “I just step back and watch him go,” Goodwin said.Ĭespedes has other quirks. When a runner is rounding first base, Tom Goodwin, the Mets’ first-base coach, typically tells the runner “two” or “three” to indicate whether he should go for a double or a triple. ![]() His teammates learned to perk up a bit more when he hit balls into the gap, like fans sitting in the bleachers. Soon, his batting practice sessions became must-see events, one-man home run derbies. Within days of joining the Mets, Cespedes broke out the underhand throw. Cespedes does things - like the underhand throw - that his teammates and coaches have never seen when he bats or fields or runs, they make sure to watch. With Cespedes anchoring the lineup, the Mets are positioned to earn their first playoff berth since 2006.Ĭespedes has electrified the Mets and their fans unlike any player since Jose Reyes in his prime. 21, Cespedes hit three home runs and collected seven R.B.I.s - two weeks’ worth of production for some players. 301 batting average, 21 extra-base hits, and 29 R.B.I., and he has led them to a 22-11 record. “I know if I did it, there would be a few rifling back over my left shoulder,” he said.Īfter the Mets acquired Cespedes from the Detroit Tigers at the July 31 trade deadline, his offensive influence was obvious and immediate.
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