Mets: Robinson Cano brings playoff experience but not much success

Robinson Cano brings a World Series ring with him to the 2019 New York Mets. However, his postseason experience doesn’t include much success.

By acquiring Robinson Cano, the New York Mets did a lot more than add a veteran bat to the lineup. They also managed to place a guy with extensive postseason experience on the roster.

Cano’s years with the New York Yankees helped him amass a total of 51 playoff games. Although the Yankees didn’t experience much success other than their 2009 championship, it was an opportunity for Cano to add to his resume.

Unfortunately, Cano didn’t have the hitter’s version of what Madison Bumgarner has done in October baseball. In fact, Cano has been pretty unimportant in playoff baseball.

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Overall, in 217 plate appearances, Cano his a .222/.267/.419 hitter with 8 home runs and 33 RBI. His last trip to the postseason in 2012 was remarkably bad. He slashed .091/.130/.182 in the ALDS victory over the Baltimore Orioles. In their ALCS loss to the Detroit Tigers, he batted only 056/.056/.056.

Unless you have OCD, there’s nothing to appreciate about that line.

Cano has had his moments in the postseason. He played very well in the 2010 postseason and again in the one series the Yankees survived through the following season. Otherwise, he has been no Steve Pearce in the playoffs.

Adding a guy with some playoff experience can help a team. The Mets do have a few guys on their roster with playoff history thanks mostly to their own trip there back in 2015. However, no one other than Cano actually helped his team win a World Series. Even claiming that Cano helped may be a stretch. He batted only .136/.130/.136 in the 2009 World Series.

The postseason struggles aren’t a result of slowing down. Cano has been a better second-half hitter in his career. The .314/.363/.511 batting line post-All-Star Game beats the .297/.348/.479 line from the first-half by notable enough margins. From June through October’s regular season games, he has hit above .300 in each month individually.

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I’m not sure how overrated a player with postseason experience is or how much success in it even matters. David Price went from a batting practice pitcher to a clutch arm during the playoffs in 2018. Anyone can redeem themselves or have a terrible series.