The Mets released a concerning statement on their star slugger, Yoenis Cespedes, who did not show up to the ballpark for their Sunday afternoon game in Atlanta.
"As of game time, Yoenis Cespedes has not reported to the ballpark today," general manager Brodie Van Wagenen said in a statement. "He did not reach out to management with any explanation for his absence. Our attempts to contact him have been unsuccessful."
The team does not have any reason to believe Cespedes' safety is at risk, according to one person familiar with the situation.
Cespedes, 34, was in the Mets' starting lineup on Saturday at Truist Park in Atlanta. He went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in the team's 7-1 loss to the Braves.
Prior to the game, manager Luis Rojas indicated Cespedes would not be in Sunday's lineup.
The announcement of the lineup was also delayed, but when Rojas was asked directly if the team was waiting on any players to arrive, the manager chalked it up to the quick turnaround of Saturday night's game to Sunday afternoon's early arrival.
"Nothing in particular," Rojas said on the delay of the lineup announcement. "We're just arriving from the night-day game."
Cespedes is in the final year of his contract with the Mets, which was restructured in January following his 2019 accident with a wild boar. He rehabbed from multiple surgeries on his heels and ankle and returned to play Opening Day in his first-big league game since July 2018.
The slugger is batting .161 (5-for-31) with two home runs, four RBI, two walks, three runs scored and 15 strikeouts from the designated-hitter spot across the first nine games of the season.
