Jose Reyes, IF
Basic Stats: 110 G, 251 PA, 4 HR, .189/.260/.320
Advanced Stats: 62 wRC+, .255 wOBA, .132 ISO, -0.9 fWAR, -1.0 bWAR
Grade: F
Few could have predicted in 2003 that Jose Reyes‘ final curtain call to New York Mets fans would be as lukewarm as it was when the 35-year-old shortstop was lifted from 2017’s Game 162.
After a confounding and frustrating two-and-a-half seasons with Mets, the disturbing reality that he only returned to Flushing because he was arrested on domestic abuse charges in late-2015 and eventually released by the Colorado Rockies never left. For the small pockets of fans that nostalgically chanted ‘Jose, Jose, Jose, Joseeeee’ there lingered an even greater uncomfortable aura around his place on the team.
Any argument that Reyes’ everyday presence would allow shortstop Amed Rosario to develop into a bonafide major league player was quickly erased each time the shortstop took the field: For someone as vastly over matched and outplayed in every facet of the game, why not employ him as a member of the coaching staff?
There was zero justification for the Mets to employ Reyes in 2018. He was not the reason the team never seriously contended – no team fails exclusively because of one bench player – but his place on the 25-man roster was very well a representation of the types of decision-making that led to the Mets’ decline in 2018.
2018 Review:
Reyes made the transition from everyday player to bench player in exceptionally poor fashion. If the argument that Reyes’ slow start resembled 2017’s effort, the long-awaited renaissance never occurred: It took until Reyes’ 50th game of the season for his on-base plus slugging to exceed .500. On only seven days of the season was his batting average greater than .200 and his on-base percentage was never greater than .300. The shortstop’s -0.9 fWAR represented the fifth worst in the major leagues – and only marginally ahead of St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Dexter Fowler (-1.2 fWAR) for the worst in the National League.
Reyes deservedly took criticism for his role on the team in 2018; however, it would be remiss to view this as anything other than organizational failure to structure its roster. To be sure, Reyes acknowledged and understood his struggles as professionally as he could, but it failed to make his presence any less confusing – until the season’s final weeks, when it was announced Mets Captain David Wright would return for the season’s final series against the Miami Marlins.
Reyes and Wright had the opportunity to start one final game on the left-side of the infield. Wright’s well-deserved and respected reception was front-and-center. Reyes was there to join in a disjointed picture of what could have been? The 2006 National League East champions that almost reached the pinnacle but suffered through collapse and loss never took New York City back from the New York Yankees in the post-dynasty days. As Wright’s door closed, so, too, did Reyes’, and a generation of Mets fans’ wistful hopes were crudely put to bed.
2019 Outlook:
Reyes’ Mets career is likely finished. Although the veteran insists he wants to continue his professional career, he will likely have to settle for a minor-league agreement with a team hoping the veteran can figure out how to adjust to a part-time role.
