Yoenis Cespedes comes out to Lion King theme song (Video)

New York Mets slugger Yoenis Cespedis walked up to the plate to the Lion King theme song “Circle of Life” on Opening Day against the Braves.

It’s possible no one in the major league has more fun playing baseball than Yoenis Cespedes, and as a result, the Mets outfielder brings a smile to fans’ faces on a regular basis. Cespedes only needed to walk to the plate to bring joy to the fans at Citi Field on Opening Day.

Most players stride to the plate to rap, hard rock or Latin music. But the unmistakable sounds of “Circle of Life,” the iconic opening theme song of Disney’s The Lion King, filled the air as the All-Star slugger stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the first inning of New York’s Opening Day matchup with the Atlanta Braves.

Though it may come as a surprise to fans outside New York, the song has been part of Cedspedes’ routine for a while now. In late August 2016, a few days after inserting it as his walk-up music, Cespedes hit a game-winning home run against the Marlins. Oddly enough, as Chris Landers of MLB.com pointed out, the ball landed just out of the reach of a grown man wearing a Simba costume. Spooky.

Naturally, teammate Noah Syndergaard, Mets Opening Day starter, used scenes from the movie to celebrate Cespedes re-signing with the club over the offseason.

Unfortunately for Mets fans, the song didn’t produce the same magic for Cespedes on Opening Day that it did last summer. The 32-year-old right-handed hitter wasn’t able to capitalize on an Asdrubal Cabrera single in his first RBI opportunity of the season. Braves starter Julio Teheran struck out the King of Queens on a full count.