Life after Jose Reyes: Mets move on with Ruben Tejada, Andres Torres
Andres Torres, left, and Ruben Tejada will be tasked with the job of replacing Jose Reyes. Credit: AP and Newsday/Jim McIsaac
So, how do you plan to replace Jose Reyes?
The question itself is a rhetorical one. Basically, there is no logical way for the Mets to replace Reyes, not with their financial restrictions and the current composition of the roster.
Instead, the Mets have patched the hole at shortstop with another homegrown prospect, Ruben Tejada, and now must cross their fingers that Torres can be a serviceable spark plug atop the batting order. As for Torres, he has no idea how to compensate for the loss of the game's most dynamic leadoff man, so he figured there was only one thing to do.
Ask Reyes for help.
"I talked to Jose about stealing bases, how to take leads, because I wanted to learn about that," said Torres, who chatted with Reyes on the field in Jupiter, Fla. "I'm a guy that, wherever I go, and I see those types of players, you always ask those things because that's how you get better. He gave me some good advice. I admire him so much."
The Mets didn't quite share Torres' adoration back in December, when they chose to pass on Reyes before he ultimately signed a six-year, $106-million contract with the Marlins. By doing so, they said goodbye to the only batting champion in the 50-year history of the franchise, not to mention a four-time All-Star who scored 101 runs in 126 games and had a career-best .384 on-base percentage last season.
For the record, Torres has never surpassed .343, which he did back in 2010, when he scored 84 runs in 139 games. The value of stolen bases depends on which side of the Moneyball argument you choose, but Torres can't come close to applying the sort of pressure on a defense that Reyes has during his healthier years -- even after getting tips from him.
Defensively, the Mets don't have as much to worry about, and Tejada actually could be considered an upgrade at the position. According to The Fielding Bible, Volume III -- a video-based statistical analysis compiled by John Dewan -- Reyes cost the Mets 13 runs a year ago. Tejada's projection for this season is a mere minus-one.
Faced with the inevitable comparisons upon his arrival in February, Tejada chose not to make any with Reyes.
"I'm just going to be Ruben Tejada," he said. "That's all I can do."
"I'm not asking Ruben Tejada to do what Jose Reyes did offensively," the manager said. "You can't ask anybody on this team because we don't have that guy."
What the Mets have tried to do during spring training is turn the page, but that is easier said than done. Losing Reyes -- especially to Miami, a division rival -- hurt the franchise on a number of fronts. In addition to sabotaging their lineup, it made the Mets look like a big-market impostor, too cheap or bankrupt to retain their own homegrown talent.
As much as the Mets have grown accustomed to that perception, and continue to sift through the financial fallout left by the Madoff mess, the on-field void left by Reyes is the greater concern. It's a wound that will be opened time and again this season whenever the Mets and Marlins meet -- as long as Reyes is healthy enough to play on those days.
"Obviously, I'll miss him," David Wright said. "I'm sure the organization and the fans will miss him. But as soon as he doesn't show up here the first day, and he's not here, it's time to move on.
"It's not a knock against Jose, it's just a reality. We can't sit here and keep worrying about who's not here because Jose's not coming back. No matter how much anybody in here wants it or any of the fans want it, it's just not going to happen.
"So the reality of it is we're going to move on, and the quicker we do that, the better it will be for us."
