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With the Baltimore Orioles, Cedric Mullins provided the franchise with a marketable personality, hitting 101 home runs during eight mostly rebuilding campaigns. Last fall, the New York Mets' marketing department attempted to hide the outfielder after his trade deadline acquisition.
In 42 regular-season games with the Mets, Mullins hit .182 with two home runs and 10 RBI, creating a short stay in Queens.
In his opening 42 games with his new club, the Tampa Bay Rays, the results have nearly been the same, posting a .181 batting average with three homers and 14 RBI.
For now, Mullins remains the everyday center fielder for the AL East-leading Rays, but when looking at his recent resume, how much longer will Rays manager Kevin Cash view the nine-year veteran's slow start as a slump over diminishing skills?
Rays' Cedric Mullins remains in everyday lineup despite struggles
Mullins agreed to a one-year, $6.5 million contract with the Rays last season, with a $10 million option for 2027, according to Spotrac.com.
While his defense remains strong, Mullins' on-base percentage continues to decline. After posting a .305 mark in 2024, it fell to .299 in '25 and .247 this season, entering Friday's game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium.
Four times in his career, Mullins stole at least 22 bases. With the Rays, he was caught five of 15 attempts.
At the start of May, Mullins was slashing .126/.184/.232, but Cash continued to keep the veteran in the lineup, seemingly convinced the former All-Star is suffering through a prolonged slump.
On Friday, Mullins collected two hits in four at-bats, producing his third multi-hit game this season as the Rays (34-15) earned a 4-2 victory, improving the division lead over the second-place Yankees (30-22) to 5.5 games.
With a comfortable division advantage, the Cash can afford to continue utilizing Mullins' elite defense, but how much longer will the franchise ignore his diminishing offensive production?
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