Deep down inside I think I knew this was the way it was going to end. Even back in June I was saying I needed to get some wear out of my t-shirt before it became outdated and needed to be retired. But it still doesn’t change the way I feel. Losing Jose Reyes to the division rival Miami Marlins just plain sucks.
Granted, it hasn’t always been the smoothest ride. How many times did I watch him get picked off first or get thrown out because he wasn’t paying attention or wasn’t hustling out of the box? How many times did I watch him go on the DL with another injury? How many times did I sit and wonder when or if he was going to reach this “potential” everyone kept talking about? More often than I want to admit in all three cases.
But, there is just something about being able to root for a talented, exciting, home grown player. A player that made his major league debut a day before his 20th birthday. A player who has been the longest tenured member of the roster for the past several seasons. A player who just won the first batting title in franchise history. A player who brings you to your feet every time he hits the ball into one of the gaps. A player who has been selected to the All Star Game four times, won the silver slugger in 2006, led the league in stolen bases from ‘05-’07, and triples four times. A player that unites different cultures. Someone the fans can look up to.
But, let’s be realists. Even with all the past adorations and typical attachment that fans have to players, I can’t fault the Mets for not bringing Reyes back. With few exceptions, signing a player to a 6+ year contract, in excess of $100M, does not make smart business sense. But, here is where the debate escalates. Shouldn’t the Mets be able to spend the money needed to keep Reyes while still having enough reserves to fill out the rest of the roster? Who cares if the last couple years are dead weight? This is, after all, New York.
Let’s look at the length of the contract. Reyes will be 28 years old on Opening Day 2012. Fast forward to year six, and he will begin the 2017 season at 34 years old, and 35 if his option invests for 2018. It would seem that is hardly ancient history in the baseball universe. But, for someone whose game is highly predicated on speed, this could become ugly for the Marlins, and quickly. I point out two players who I feel fit Reyes’ profile quite well: Roberto Alomar and Luis Castillo. Yes, THAT Luis Castillo.
Alomar was 33 while in his final season with Cleveland in 2001. He hit 20 HR’s, had 12 triples, drove in 100 runs, all while batting .336 and stealing 30 bases. Oh, and he did this while winning his 10th gold glove and making his 12th consecutive All Star Game appearance. The Mets acquired him in a blockbuster deal, a piece many expected to help them get back to the post-season after missing the play-offs in 2001.
Alomar proceeded to hit .266 with the Mets in 2002, with 11 HR’s, 4 triples, 53 RBI’s, and 16 SB’s. He followed that up in the first half of his age 35 season with a .262 average, 2 HR’s, 1 triple, and 6 SB’s before the Mets cut him loose by trading him to the White Sox. This was a player that made the Hall of Fame on the second time he showed up on the ballot and rarely missed any time due to injuries.
As for Castillo, he led the league in SB’s twice and hit over .300 eight times in his career, including 2009 with the Mets when he was a shell of his former self. However, while performing at a Gold Glove level from ’03-’05 while making the All Star Game three times, Castillo started to lose most of his range in his age 30 season with Minnesota to the point where he was considered a below average defensive second baseman when he was traded to the Mets in 2007. And we all know where it went from there.
Castillo was never the player he once was while with the Mets. He missed many games due to leg injuries during both the ’08 and ’10 seasons, and was released before the end of Spring Training last year, his final year of his contract. His contract is just one of the many examples of past failures with the Minaya administration, and should provide a tale of caution to players who rely on speed going into their 30’s.
Granted, both Alomar and Castillo were second basemen. But, the fact that Reyes is a short stop instead should only amplify the reasoning behind this argument. It is quite possible, and highly probable, that Reyes will need to move to second base sometime during this contract due to a deterioration of his defensive skills and a reduction in his range in future seasons. This likelihood only adds to the risk that the Marlins are taking with him.
This leads me to the next question. Why didn’t Alderson and the Mets try to trade Reyes if they didn’t think they’d be able to sign him to a deal that worked for them? Why didn’t they try to sign him to a shorter extension after taking over as GM last off-season? Those are honestly valid questions, and ones that will be discussed in length throughout the off-season. My best guess is the injuries limited what the Mets could get in return for Reyes in the trade market, and the team expected to be able to compete for him on the Free Agent market with two 1st round picks the consolation prize for losing him to another team.
I highly doubt that Alderson could have predicted that the Marlins would be the team to sign Reyes, and compounded with the changes to the CBA, the Mets would be stuck with Miami’s third round pick along with the supplemental pick between the first and second rounds. If he had that knowledge, I’m sure he would have looked a little harder to trade Reyes at the deadline.
Then again, Jose was just coming off the disabled list as the All Star break ended and his value was quite a bit lower than during the beginning of the season. A second trip to the DL was probably enough to make Alderson want to roll the dice going into the off-season. Obviously we can sit here and second guess the front office all we want, but we don’t know what the offers were for Jose and what Alderson thought he could get with the picks in the upcoming draft.
But what about the extension last off-season? Reyes was coming off two consecutive years with an injury, and was in no way showing signs of the season he was about to have. Looking back, I’m sure Alderson wishes he would have offered a three year extension to Reyes last off-season to keep him through his age 30 season. But, again, it’s easy to second guess at this point and there were no guarantees that Jose was going to perform any better than he had up to that point.
And such is the predicament of the Mets going forward. Not only do they have to rebuild the farm system after several years of trading away talent and bringing in limited replacements. But the Mets also have to become viable financially again. The Mets shouldn’t be forced to search through the bargain bin each year during free agency. The Mets shouldn’t be worried about losing their home grown talent. They should be able to make any deal that they want. The only question should be whether they want a certain player, and not if they can afford him.
As a Mets fan I can only hope that the financial state of the franchise improves in the near future. I feel like the organization has taken some steps forward in the past year in regards to player development and talent evaluation. However, if the Mets are not able to keep the talent they develop or sign the missing pieces to the puzzle through free agency, then they will not be able to compete on a consistent basis going forward.
Which leads me to my final thought. If the current financial state of the Mets continues throughout this season and into next off-season, the commissioner needs to make it a priority to force a change with the Mets ownership. No team should be hamstrung by the personal problems of their owner. Especially a team in a major market. The organization deserves to have the resources necessary to support the team. The fans deserve the opportunity to root on its home grown talent. And the players deserve the satisfaction of knowing that the team will do whatever it takes to add the necessary pieces to win. This is, after all, New York.
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