Early Grumblings from Port St. Lucie

Photo by Adam Rubin

Jose Reyes rolled into Port St. Lucie pimped out like Timo Perez.  I wonder if Jose can rock that space age vest when the Mercury Mets take the field this year? 

Frankie Rodriguez's white lamborghini was towed into camp.  I'm glad Frankie has decided to take a low profile after his assault charge last year.  I'm sure he won't stick out driving around Port St. Lucie in an Italian sports car.

 

In other news at Mets camp, Bill Pulsipher is thinking about a Generation K reunion at Citi Field after learning of the Jason Isringhausen signing.  It's a shame that nobody else other than Pulse, Izzy and Wilson would want to see that reunion.  How about a Rey Ordonez - Luis Lopez reunion?  That reunion is bound to have much more fireworks.

Could Jose Reyes Earn $100 million in Free Agency?

Despite signing Jose Reyes to a contract extension earlier in the offseason, the Mets act as if it is still uncertain whether Jose will be a part of their long-term plans.  I am perplexed that the Mets are willing to take this approach with the best homegrown position player in franchsie history since Darryl Strawberry.  Yes, that's right, Jose Reyes is a better player and more valuable than David Wright. I understand that power, which David Wright supplies, is generally a a more valuable commodity, but it is much easier to find a power hitting third baseman than a dynamic shortstop like Jose Reyes. The fact remains that Jose Reyes is one of the top four shortstops in the game along with Hanley Ramirez, Troy Tulowitzki, and and Elvis Andrus.  Jose is in elite company among major league shortstops.  He plays stellar defense, hits for a high average, steals bags, and is the catalyst for the Mets offense.  Most importantly, he was an iron man from 2005 to 2008 after not being able to run in 2003 and 2004 with a myriad of strange back and leg issues. 

Given Jose's productivity at one of the most high profile positions in baseball, it's amusing that the Mets are not sure whether Jose fits into their long-term plans.  Reyes might be able to earn $100 million in free agency similar to Carl Crawford, who put up comparable numbers while playng leftfield, which is regarded as a less important position.

When Jose Reyes has played a minimum of 150 games, he has swiped no less than 56 bases, including a peak of 78 stolen bases in 2007.  He has led the National League three times in stolen bases (2005-2007) and triples (2005-2006, 2008) while maintaining a .286 career average.

Year	Team	G	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP
2003	NYM	69	47	84	12	4	5	32	13	.307	.334
2004	NYM	53	33	56	16	2	2	14	19	.255	.271
2005	NYM	161	99	190	24	17	7	58	60	.273	.300
2006	NYM	153	122	194	30	17	19	81	64	.300	.354
2007	NYM	160	119	191	36	12	12	57	78	.280	.354
2008	NYM	159	113	204	37	19	16	68	56	.297	.358
2009	NYM	36	18	41	7	2	2	15	11	.279	.355
2010	NYM	133	83	159	29	10	11	54	30	.282	.321
Career		924	634	1,119	191	83	74	379	331	.286	.335

Meanwhile, Carl Crawford has led the American League four times in stolen bases (2003-2004, 2006-2007) and triples (2004-2006, 2010) while maintaining a .296 career average.
 

Year	Team	G	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	AVG	OBP
2002	TB	63	23	67	11	6	2	30	9	.259	.290
2003	TB	151	80	177	18	9	5	54	55	.281	.309
2004	TB	152	104	185	26	19	11	55	59	.296	.331
2005	TB	156	101	194	33	15	15	81	46	.301	.331
2006	TB	151	89	183	20	16	18	77	58	.305	.348
2007	TB	143	93	184	37	9	11	80	50	.315	.355
2008	TB	109	69	121	12	10	8	57	25	.273	.319
2009	TB	156	96	185	28	8	15	68	60	.305	.364
2010	TB	154	110	184	30	13	19	90	47	.307	.356
Career		1,235	765	1480	215	105	104	592	409	.296	.337

Despite the fact that Crawford hits for a career average that is 10 points higher than Reyes, he has never swiped more than 60 bases in a season, which Reyes has already accomplished twice in his young career.  And you get the impression that Jose, at 27 years old and two years younger than Crawford, has not reached his full potential.  Although, he might come off as aloof because of his bubbly personality, Jose has always played the game hard and if he ever manages to become more of a student of the game, there is no reason he cannot rob 80 or 90 bases next season.