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Major League Baseball announced that Yoenis Cespedes won one of the three National League awards for the outfield. It is Cespedes’s first career Silver Slugger award, and he becomes the first Mets player to win the award since David Wright won the honor in 2008. He also joins Carlos Beltran and Daryl Strawberry as the only other Mets outfielders to receive the award.
The Silver Slugger awards are voted on by MLB coaches and managers and are awarded to the best offensive player at each position in each league. The prize is awarded to three outfielders in each league, regardless of their specific position in the outfield.
Cespedes was among the best offensive outfielders in the National League this season, hitting .280/.354/.530 with 34 home runs and a 134 wRC+. Among all qualified outfielders with at least 500 innings in the field, his wRC+ ranked first.
The 31-year-old Cespedes is a free agent and should be cashing in on his great season. And the Mets have made it clear that bringing Cespedes back is a priority.