Jose Reyes Became a Star with the 2006 New York Mets

Near the end of the 2006 season, the "experts" were in agreement that New York Mets' shortstop Jose Reyes  was on the verge of stardom.

Reyes finished the year batting .300 for the first time in his career, had a .354 on base average thanks to his 54 walks, which almost doubled his previous high and he slugged .487. Reyes led the league with 17 triples. He hit 30 doubles, 19 home runs and stole 64 bases. Can anyone say "Willie Mays?"

The 2006 New York Mets' 97 wins led National League teams. They finished third in runs per game (5.15), slugged 200 home runs and finished third with a 4.14 ERA.

Jose Reyes was the igniter. Paul LoDuca, who usually batted after Reyes, considered him the key.

"He's the key to our offense, He's dynamic. He changes everything, even the pitcher's motion. I don't know if he knows it yet, but we know he's going to be a superstar." "

An excellent example of what LoDuca said occurred in a game at Philadelphia on June13.

Reyes led off the game with a bunt single. He stole second and scored on LoDuca' single that allowed the Mets to jump out to a lead after the first two batters.

Reyes was becoming an excellent bunter in the tradition of Phil Rizzuto and Mickey Mantle.

"If you put it in the right place," Reyes explained, "it doesn't matter that they're waiting for it. You just drop it and run like crazy."

When asked about patience at the plate, Reyes said that he had spoken to Rickey Henderson during spring training. He began looking for his pitch instead of swinging at whatever the pitcher was throwing to him.

"I look for my pitch now. With two strikes, I used to swing at pitches in the dirt. Now if I'm looking for a fastball, I'm going to wait for a fastball."

On June 21, Reyes led off the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Shea Stadium with a home run off Joe Mays. He hit for the cycle, becoming only the third player in the last 25 years at the time (Tony Phillips in 1986 and Mark Grudzielanek in 2005) to lead off the game with a home run and then hit for the cycle.

Reyes is the superstar everyone predicted he would become. To realize his greatness, one only has to compare him with the great Derek Jeter since 2006.

Reyes has batted .297/.354/.458, averaging 15 home runs and 59 steals over a 162-game season.

Jeter has batted .311/.379/.428, averaging 13 home runs and 23 steals over a 162-game season.

The Miami Marlins have signed Reyes to a contract through 2017 with an option for 2018 that could make the contract worth $120 million.

As the Mets and their fans, much to their dismay are well aware of, it takes more than Jose Reyes to win a pennant. The Miami Marlins should keep that in mind.

Source Citation

Gergen, Joe. "Jose Reyes developing into a star: Mets' talented, young shortstop continues to show potential to be ranked among the games elite performers." Baseball Digest Sept. 2006: 54+. General OneFile. Web. 6 Dec. 2011.

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