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Asdrubal Cabrera has been on the New York Mets for a bit over a year now.
In fact, it really was just over a year ago: December 11, 2015 to be exact. The New York Mets officially announced the signing of veteran middle infielder, Asdrubal Cabrera.
He came over after spending the 2015 season with Tampa Bay and 2014 with division rival, Washington.
Cabrera has definitely made an impact since joining the Mets. And of course, he had the most amazing bat flip of all time this past season. But, let’s take a closer look at his 2016.
How’d he fare in 2016?
In his first year as a Met, Cabrera ended on a tear.
After a sluggish start to the summer, Cabrera caught fire. In August, he hit .405 in 12 games upon returning from a knee injury. That streak included five games of multiple hits.
September saw Cabrera hit six home runs and drive in 18 over 29 games. He was simply the Mets’ hottest hitter down the stretch while recapturing the form that made him an All-Star twice in Cleveland (2011-12).
Through it all though, it was his defense that really stood out. Cabrera put a stamp on his play in the field, especially early in the season. He eventually became statistically one of the top fielding shortstops during 2016.
The now 31-year old Cabrera has proven to be an asset in multiple ways, but how much longer will he be in a Mets uniform? What can be expected of him next season? We’ll analyze all of that and more, but let’s take a look at Cabrera’s total season in review.
Areas for improvement
So, where can Cabrera improve?
Everybody goes through slumps so it would be rough to nitpick the summer dry spell. It felt like Cabrera really started to press as he got deeper into that stretch. Of course, with being a career hitter like Cabrera is, you’re going to have a stretch like that during the season.
I can’t sit here and type out any big improvements he needs to make defensively. If anything, he out-performed some expectations of him in the field. He’s not the rangiest shortstop in the league, but he is certainly a passable defensive shortstop.
Cabrera did have knee issues that he battled through. Outside of the in-season injury that kept him out for a couple of weeks in August, Cabrera also strained his knee in spring training.
Even through all that, Cabrera still suited up and played in 141 games last season.
Role for 2017
Asdrubal Cabrera will obviously be the starter at short going into 2017 as long as he stays healthy.
Cabrera will be representing Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, which starts next March.
Offensively, the question of David Wright’s availability going forward could shift the lineup around a bit. All things considered though, Cabrera has been a two-hole hitter throughout his career. He has a .270 batting average in 2,042 at-bats when batting in that slot.
Contract status and trade rumors
Cabrera’s contract is up at the end of the 2017 season and there are all kinds of questions that will be set to surround the Mets. He and Neil Walker may have been originally viewed as shorter term options until prospects were ready.
Most notably, Amed Rosario, the Mets’ top prospect who was deemed untouchable in trades by Sandy Alderson is on the rise.
When will Rosario be ready though? What if his development stalls a bit? What if Cabrera does over a full season, what he accomplished in the last two months? There are several different scenarios, but one thing is for certain: Rosario is seen as the future and at this point, it doesn’t look to be too far away.
We’ll see how that whole situation develops and what Rosario does throughout the year. If Cabrera does put together a year reminiscent of his last two months in 2016, he would most likely price himself out of the Mets’ range in free agency anyway.
All we know for sure is the obvious: Cabrera will be the Mets’ everyday shortstop in 2017.
The timing may work out perfectly for the Mets. Rosario impressed at the plate with the move up to AA-Binghamton. In 54 games, he hit .341 with 14 doubles, five triples, and scored 38 runs.
Overall, Asdrubal Cabrera brings stability to this infield going into 2017. He also brings protection to Cespedes in the order. It may be his last as a Met, but after ten years in the big leagues, we know what to expect from Cabrera.
Cabrera gif time!
Next: Mets looking at options for center field in 2017
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