The New York Mets are currently playing against the Atlanta Braves, but they are without one of their key players. The team says that outfielder Yoenis Cespedes did not report to the ballpark on Sunday, and that he did not provide an explanation for his absence.
Mets general manager Brodie Van Wagenen said in a statement on Sunday that team could not locate Cespedes before the game:
As of game time, Yoenis Céspedes has not reported to the ballpark today. He did not reach out to management with any explanation for his absence. Our attempts to contact him have been unsuccessful.
The team also said that attempts to reach the 34-year-old outfielder have been “unsuccessful” so far. Cespedes played in Saturday’s game against the Braves, and was supposed to be in the starting lineup on Sunday before his absence. The Mets statement doesn’t indicate whether they believe this is a behavioral issue or something more serious, but fans on social media have already begun condemning the statement, with the belief that the team should have contacted him before releasing any information about his absence.
UPDATE: At 2:26 pm, MLB on Fox reporter Ken Rosenthal tweeted that a source “with knowledge of the situation” revealed that the Mets do not believe that Cespedes is currently risking his safety.
Mets have learned they have no reason to believe Cespedes’ safety is at risk, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) August 2, 2020
UPDATE #2: Over the course of the afternoon, speculation abounded that Cespedes had decided to opt out of the 2020 MLB season — which would also explain his absence from today’s game. According to a tweet from MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, that is in fact what’s going on here.
Cespedes is indeed opting out
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) August 2, 2020
ESPN’s Jeff Passan provided more details via Mets general manager Brodie Von Wagenen. According to his report, the Mets did not learn that Cespedes had opted out of the rest of the season until midway through today’s game.
When Yoenis Cespedes didn't show up today, the Mets sent security to his room. They found it empty. He had taken his belongings, just up and left, and through his agent informed the team mid-game that he was opting out, according to Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 2, 2020
This is a developing story, and will be updated with any new information.
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