Some cringe at the thought, while others seem content moving in a different direction, but the universal thought of Jose Reyes not being the Mets everyday shortstop beyond this year would be anything but weird.
We’re not talking about Derek Jeter leaving the Yankees weird, but Jose Reyes and the Mets together have been synonymous ever since he was signed as a 16-year-old wunderkind from the Dominican Republic.
With contract negotiations between Reyes and the Mets likely being postponed until after the 2011 season, this very well could be the last we see of Reyes in a Mets uniform.
It’s a strange concept to wrap your head around. Reyes along with David Wright were set to be the franchise cornerstones. They were supposed to lead the Mets out of the dark and win championships.
That never happened, and may never will.
Reports this week have suggested that Reyes and the Mets will postpone extension talks until after the season is done, much the same way talks have broken down between Albert Pujols and the St. Louis Cardinals.
When Sandy Alderson was hired as the team’s general manager, one of the major issues he faced was how he would handle the core group of players (Reyes, Wright, Carlos Beltran, etc.). Well, nearly three months into the job Alderson has established that he has the same sentimental attachment to the core players as he does as a day old sock.
Alderson wants to mold the team in his image. He wants things to change. Most of all Alderson wants to win.
Despite calls from Mets fans to hire Wally Backman, Alderson hired a no-nonsense coach in Terry Collins to change the country club type atmosphere. Alderson has demonstrated that he will not be swayed by public sentiment.
Alderson has a vision. And with each passing day, that vision may not include Reyes in the future.
I’m getting a little far ahead of myself. I don’t know exactly what Alderson is thinking and it all depends on what Reyes does this year. If Reyes can churn out a career year, stay healthy and make the Mets a playoff contender then all bets are off.
Who knows, maybe this laissez faire attitude by Alderson is a motivational tactic set to light a fire under Reyes. However, the message is clear: shape up or ship out. No one is expendable.
From a personal side, I want Reyes to play motivated, get his money and make the Mets relevant again. It’s natural to have a sentimental attachment to Reyes. He is fiery, feisty, exuberant and above all else exciting. Plain and simple, he is a fan favorite.
But, sometimes we have to look at the bigger picture and check our sentimental hearts at the door. Mets fans who adore Reyes must brace for the possibility that this could be the last we see of him.
With the contracts for Oliver Perez, Luis Castillo, Carlos Beltran and perhaps Francisco Rodriguez coming off the books, a new era is dawning.
Alderson will have a say if Reyes will be part of the new era. But mostly, it is Reyes who is in charge of writing the last chapter.
Sandy Alderson has Zero intention of re-signing Jose Reyes. Why? A-Reyes doesn’t walk 90 times a year, and Alderson works solely on statistical analysis based on OBP & SLG %. B-Alderson has a severe aversion to a game based on speed. His philosophy of the game is very similar to Earl Weaver. Whereas Weaver was a bloop, a bleeder, and a blast (3 run HR), Alderson is walk, single, blast or walk, walk, blast. His philosophy does not believe in sacrifice bunts, hit and run, or stealing a base to get into scoring position. Rather, he believes in playing base to base and waiting on the 3 run homer. The problem with that is CitiField. You can’t play that way in this park. In Philly, yes. Cinncinatti, yes. But not at this park. But that won’t deter Alderson from enforcing his views on Terry Collins and the Mets this season and the 3 years after that. While I appreciate the fact he is trying to change the atmosphere around the Mets and trying to get them back to relevance, I totally disagree with his Moneyball approach to how the game should be played on the field and can’t wait for the day he leaves the Mets.
Since Reyes doesn’t put up sexy enough OBP numbers for Alderson, and is so aggressive on the bases, one can deduce accurately that Reyes’s days in Flushing are about to be, well, flushed. If Jose stays healthy I wonder if Alderson( and I believe he will) will order Collins to Red light Reyes and keep him from attempting as many SB’s. I’m willing to go out on a limb and say that if Jose plays 145-150 games, he will steal no more than 30 bases in 2011 (the same # he had in 130 odd games in 2010). Welcome to Sandy Ball folks!
I respectfully submit that 86Mets commentary is flawed and below I’ll attempt to explain why I believe this.
Alderson was the GM of the Oakland A’s from 1983-1997. The “Moneyball approach” didn’t even exist until A’s ownership mandated a cut in payroll in 1995. Therefore Alderson ran the A’s without this “Moneyball approach” for over a decade, a period in which the A’s appeared in 3 consecutive World Series, winning one, and also reaching an ALCS which they lost. This non-Moneyball-based period of post season appearances is a greater period of success than the Mets have ever had under any philosophy.
Regarding OBP: Carney Lansford appeared in the lead off spot for the 1988 AL Champion A’s more than any other player, in 67 games, and produced an overall OBP of .327 that season. Luis Polonia batted lead off the second most for the A’s that year, in 59 games, producing an overall OBP of .338 that season. Tony Phillips batted lead off in the third most games for the A’s that year, 23, and produced an overall OBP of .320 that season. Somehow the A’s under Alderson managed to become AL Champions in 1988 despite 149 games of lead off batters with an OBP range of .320-.338.
Regarding speed: Under Alderson in 1983 Rickey Henderson stole 108 bases, Mike Davis 32, Bill Almon 26 and Davey Lopes 22; in 1984 Henderson stole 66 bases among 4 A’s in double figure steals; in 1985 without Henderson the A’s had 3 players with at least 24 stolen bases; in 1986 5 A’s stole double figure bases; in 1987 3 players stole at least 26 bases and 5 were in double figures; in 1988 the A’s made it to the World series despite 4 players stealing 20 or more bases; in 1989 they won the World Series with a returning Henderson stealing 52 and Lansford 37 among 4 players in double figures; Henderson led the 1990 AL Champion A’s with 65 steals among 3 players in double figures; in 1992 Henderson’s 58 steals led 4 A’s in double figures. That’s a 10 year period under Sandy Alderson in which his players stole bases at a prolific pace.
Finally, regarding waiting for the 3-run homer in Citi Field being a flawed plan assuming it’s even the plan in the first place, I suggest checking out baseball-reference.com’s ballpark factors which demonstrate that Oakland Coliseum during Alderson’s tenure favored pitchers even more than Citi Field has shown to do so far.
Alderson also had a major influence, along with Kevin Towers, in the construction of the San Diego Padres roster. Their roster is completely void of the 3-run home run type and is completely built upon pitching, defense, athleticism, and versatility. These qualities have been the mainstay in baseball for over 100 years.
I Believe that Alderson, Ricciardi, and DePodesta will combine their statistical analysis methods with these age old adages to rebuild the Mets. These are 3 of the more respected front office guys in baseball all working together, seemingly as friends on the same page, so you would think they could at least bring the Mets back to respectability.
I just would like to see the club play hard each and every day for the whole year. That would be the most dramatic change in the organization I think. They have played so snakebitten the last few years its disheartening to watch. Almsost like they are at the point where they literally sit back and accept whatever the next bad break to come their way is. They have had very little fight or pride the last few years as the Phillies have declared they will rub the Mets faces in dirt each year and then go out and actually do it while the Mets just take it without even getting mad about it. Its terrible to watch and its clearly the biggest problem with this team, and NOT a lack of talent.
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