Reyes Must Go

Last night, Jose Reyes stepped up to the plate with two outs and the tying run in scoring position.  There was not one Mets fan who expected Reyes to deliver in that spot, and for the first time all season, as he meekly flew out to left field, he lived up to expectations.

Last year, Reyes had a 94 wRC+, a -26 DRS, which was the worst among all infielders last season, and a -0.6bWAR.  Roughly translated, Reyes couldn’t hit and couldn’t field.  Overall, he was one of the worst players in all of baseball last year.  Despite all that, Reyes was given $2 million by the Mets in free agency.

This is the same organization, who twice could not be bothered to sign Kelly Johnson, who had served a vital role on their bench in 2015 and 2016.  However, when it comes to Reyes, they gave him $2 million when he should have received a minor league deal with an invitation to Spring Training and would have been lucky to just get a deal for the Major League minimum.

Now, if you are following the narratives, one of the reasons why the Mets have kept Reyes around is because of his relationship with Amed Rosario.  Being fair, who better than a former Mets great to mentor a fellow Dominican to become the next great shortstop in Mets history?

Here’s the problem with that thinking – we see no tangible results of Reyes’ mentorship of Rosario.

Rosario has a -2 DRS at shortstop.  He has a 72 wRC+ which is partially fueled by his having a 26.4 percent strikeout rate and a 4.4 percent walk rate.  As bad as that strikeout rate is, that walk rate is inexcusable.  Overall, Rosario has a -0.2 bWAR this season.

Seeing how much Rosario is struggling, you have to wonder what exactly Reyes is going to help Rosario right now.  In the event, he is even trying to do something, it’s just not working as Rosario goes deeper and deeper into this funk.

And if Reyes isn’t having an impact on Rosario, you return to the original question – why is Reyes even here?

He can’t hit.  He can’t field.  Apparently, he can’t mentor.

The Mets have Gavin Cecchini excelling in Triple-A right now.  Phillip Evans had earned a spot on the Opening Day roster with his strong Spring Training.  Luis Guillorme may be struggling at the plate, but he is a terrific middle infielder.  Really, anyone of these players on the 40 man roster are better than Reyes.

Ultimately, the Mets need to part ways with Reyes, and they need to do it now.