A Picture of Cano, in His Prime Years Long Ago
I know - I retired from the site.
Just the other day, in fact.
But Mack asked me to come back - so I will come back - for this one article here.
As I departed, I said I'd perhaps write occasionally, if something really hit me.
This one thought did strike me - I expect my articles to remain rare, but here goes:
TWENTY REASONS TO NOT BE HOPEFUL ABOUT ROBBY CANO
Cano will turn 40 shortly after the 2022 season ends. So he is 39 1/2 as we speak.
He's just 3 for 16 this spring, after a brief, decent, but powerless winter ball season.
With that as a predicate, here's 20 timely, unhopeful reasons about Cano in 2022:
1) Gil Hodges had 22 at bats at age 39, then retired.
2) Mickey Mantle retired before turning 37.
3) Joe DiMaggio - ditto
4) Tommie Agee retired before turning 32.
5) Edgardo Alfonso retired before turning 33.
6) Cleon Jones retired before turning 34.
7) Felix Millan - ditto.
8) Lenny Dykstra - ditto.
9) Ho Jo retired before turning 35.
10) Lee Mazzillli - ditto.
11) David Wright retired before turning 36.
12) Jose Reyes - ditto.
13) Bud Harrelson retired before turning 37.
14) Carlos Delgado - ditto.
15) Keith Hernandez - ditto.
16) John Olerud's career ended 2 months after he turned 37.
17) Darryl Strawberry retired before turning 38.
18) Gary Carter retired before turning 39.
19) Carlos Beltran at approximately Cano's age finished up his long career with a lackluster .231/.283/.383 season.
20) Rusty Staub was a Mets pinch hitter extraordinaire at ages 39-41, but totaled only 266 PAs in those 3 years. Truly a part timer.
Twenty of the most prominent NY (and mostly Mets) players in memory - almost all were defeated by Father Time before the current age of Robby Cano.
There were just two who continued to play, but were shells of their former selves at (and beyond) Cano's current age.
Based on those 20 reasons and the almost certain lack of future Cano consumption of performance enhancers, I see Robby Cano in 2022 (at best) as a mediocre hitting, diminished power, diminished speed, diminished fielding player - unless he can do something the above 20 were almost entirely unable to do.
The kind of player that teams intent to winning it all don't - CAN'T - play.
We've all said it many times....It's a young man's game.....
Colin Holderman knows that. The righty reliever is bringing HIGH HEAT this spring, apparently even touching 100 with one pitch, and he has fanned 9 batters in a mere 4 innings, and sports a 0.00 ERA. Nice. No, not nice. AWESOME.
Ought to be showing up in Queens in the near future. He's been oft-injured, but this year, 2022, is gonna be his year.
Who would have guessed? He was drafted in 2016, and in 2018 and the next 5 years, has just 146 innings as a pro, just 54 games on the mound, just 119 Ks, a 3.95 ERA. But....when you're ready, you're ready. He seems almost ready.
Tom
ReplyDeleteI have 2 more retirements than you.
Not a big fan of Cano after testing twice during a critical year
Every contract I ever signed had a drug clause.
Mack, I agree on Cano.
ReplyDeleteLook, he finished 2020 at nearly 38 years of age, and finished well - but was positive for performance enhancers afterwards, which leaves one to wonder how much 2020 was inflated. Then add on that he is 18 months older than he was at the end of the 2020 season. Almost all players decline, if they are still playing in that 38-40 age corridor.
Consider the severe drop off between Jose Reyes' 2nd to last season and his last - I always wondered when quick Jose would lose it and I always thought it would be his late 30s - but it arrived sooner and sharply.
Cano hit pretty well in winter ball against winter ball pitching, but no power, and no power in his first 16 ABs (3 singles) this spring. A slow guy with no power? He gets paid far too much to be a Staub or Kranepool PH-expert. I'd dump him, if this continues. This team cannot stand to carry ANY sub-par performers. He needs to be on a very short leash, IMO.
Funny that I was looking back thru some past articles for a Holderman picture we'd used in the past, and I found an article you did referring to Holderman in June 2016. While I did not find the picture, you did write in the article that I had just talked you out of retirement LOL.
I just want these multiple positive testing dudes vanished from sports
DeleteBeen saying this since Vick Mejia
Het Tom,
ReplyDeleteWelcome back..Mr Kotteeer.
Very interesting topic. I can't for the life of me understand how the owners have no recourse for habitual cheaters.
Maybe Cano will realize that he can't hack it anymore and work out some kind of buy-out or deferred payment plan ( not another Bonilla ).
Or hopefully he will suck and get caught cheating again...one could only hope.
Although its only temporary welcome back.
Joep
I agree with all of you that Cano is unlikely to pull a Julio Franco and hit like a major leaguer into his 40s. The Mets seem to be giving him plenty of opportunity to prove that wrong, even giving him a cameo at first base, which should prove to be an unnecessary skill with the likes of Alonso and Smith on the team.
ReplyDeleteThe way I understand PEDs is that they don't actually give you skill(s) you don't already have. They allow a player to recover better from the long grind of a season, and stay closer to their peak, so overall their numbers are much better over the long run.
ReplyDeleteIf this is true, then as a part-time player, he may be able to put up some decent numbers. I would certainly not bet on it, and he doesn't deserve much leeway. If he sucks, the team has to move on.
And I doubt he would accept a buy-out. A buy-out would mean paying him a little less for him to get out of his contract earlier. He has no incentive for that, no one else will sign him; he can just take the 2 years and $40M and be released.
Tom every post you write is a welcomed site...
ReplyDeleteUnlike an appearance of Robinson Cano
ReplyDeleteI would present him the alternative to retire gracefully with a deal, like what Cespedes did, or trade him to some team that is willing to take a gambit on him, like the Yanks(?). The Mets pay everything but the minimum.
ReplyDeleteOr...just cut him. Again, if he can only hit singles effectively, he is a slug on the base paths so his run production would not warrant playing time on a winning team.
Assuming Barry and Mark and Sammy were on PEDs, their performance was insanely improved - it had to do more than just improve their recovery time.
Eddie, thanks
ReplyDeleteJoe P, thanks
ReplyDeleteBVW should cover the dead money and Tom we love you and know YOUR skills haven't diminished. The inmates have been running the asylum for far to long and the owners just keep feeding the beast.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Gary. We need Cano Must Go banners at Citi. Unless he hits .400 then he can stay :)
ReplyDeletePersonally, i hope Cano has a good yesr. He's not going anywhere and a successful Cano means good things for the Mets
ReplyDeleteRay, compared to us, we're young :). I hope he succeeds, but few athletes his age do.
ReplyDeleteHere's a comp for you:
ReplyDeleteRicky Henderson, age 40, 1999 Mets: .315/.423/.466 and plenty of regular rest.
Not saying that Cano will do that, but he's got the right manager and the right situation.
Comparing current guys to yesterday rarely ever applies, the game has changed so much, fitness, preparation, and so on.
Jimmy
Mr. Brennan never needs those PED to put out a great article. Thank you sir!
ReplyDeleteCano is one of the better hitters of this era, he never was a big HR guy but drove in a hell of a lot of runs. His swing is still unbelievably gorgeous. You see guys pay attention to his AB's. Nimmo interrupted Gelbs' interview the other day to watch Cano's AB. I would argue his talent level is easily HOF, as PED enhanced as it may be. With regular rest, playing 1B, who knows....But even Uncle Steve isn't eating 22 million LOL.
ReplyDeleteI think he's a moron and would like to see the PED abusers out of the sport also, but if anyone is going to surprise at 39 it would be someone with the natural talent of Cano. Even an older, Staub level pinch hitter, who can play first and DH against righties, would be very useful.
DN, apologize, just saw your excellent perspective...yes, he has a gorgeous swing. One that young players should seek to emulate. If he is smart, he will try to just continue to try to hit line drives and use all fields. If he hits 10 HRs, but 35 doubles and .300, we'll take it. Maybe he will out-perform for a 39 year old. Recent days' signs are encouraging.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, Todd Frazier retires at age 36.
Agreed. Thanks Tom. I'd be ecstatic if he put up those numbers. He did look like vintage Cano a few days ago.
DeleteThanks, TP.
ReplyDeleteJimmy, good point, Ricky did go thru my mind as I wrote this article. Boy was he great. He could play cards whenever he wanted as far as I was concerned.
You add another excellent point. Showalter may help these guys, as should Chavez. Hitters should hit better. I wonder how Duda would have done under Showalter/Chavez? I always thought Lucas took too many pitches. My observation for him was, when he ended his at bat on a 0-0, 1-0, 2-0, or 3-0 pitch, he was Babe Ruth. When he got to 2 strikes, though, he hit like Ruth Buzzi. He took way too much.