PORT ST. LUCIE — The Mets are way ahead of last year in one respect, their shortstop looks phenomenal. Jose Reyes is the one player the Mets should keep, but they have shown absolutely no inclination of signing him to a deal. The free-agent-to-be is as good as gone.
“Someone is going to get a great player at the trade deadline,” said one scout at last night’s game against the Nationals.
David Wright said he is hoping he doesn’t lose his infield buddy and that the Mets should re-sign him.
“Yeah, that’s the kind of guy you want [on your team],” Wright said before the Mets’ 5-2 victory over the Nationals last night. “I don’t know if he’ll admit it, but I think he has a lot to prove, and I think he wants to go out there and prove he’s one of those elite players of the game, which I believe he is.”
Reyes said he is out to prove exactly that.
How healthy and how confident is Reyes with Opening Day just around the corner?
“There’s no doubt in my mind I’m going to score over 100 runs,” Reyes said, adding that he will be an All-Star again.
Reyes said he is so happy he’s healthy that his contract situation is not weighing him down.
“It’s like a weight has been taken off my back,” he said. “I feel 100 percent. I feel I have something to prove.”
Here’s one nightmare scenario for Team Nightmare: Reyes jumps to the Phillies after the season. Jimmy Rollins is also a free agent after the season. Or maybe the Yankees sign him and make Derek Jeter the DH. It’s all up in the air right now, but he’s likely to be a summer rental.
One thing is certain: Some team will make the most of the situation by acquiring Reyes.
“I still have one more year here,” Reyes said. “I have to focus and do my job this year. I’m healthy and ready to go. Whatever happens after this year happens.
“There’s no doubt I can put it all together again,” Reyes said.
The Mets clearly are grooming Ruben Tejada to replace Reyes. That’s why Tejada is not in the second-base scramble that is going to go to Luis Hernandez.
Reyes said he is excited about being a free agent, and that’s another strike against the Mets.
“It’s going to be fun how this all works out,” Reyes said with a big smile. “I play all my life in this organization. I can’t imagine being with another team, but yes, it is a possibility. You never know. It’s a good situation for me. I know this, you do something right, people will want you.
“Wherever I go, even if it’s here, I want to be for a long time,” Reyes said. “I don’t want to be jumping from one place to another.”
Reyes, 27, was able to work his entire body this offseason, unlike last year when he focused on his legs and then wound up with an oblique strain after missing most of spring training with a thyroid problem.
Reyes said he has hit it off with new manager Terry Collins.
“I love Terry,” Reyes said of the new manager. “He’s a guy who has a lot of energy, just like me, and passion for the game. He is going to help me a lot with his experience and what he knows. When he talks to me I always listen.”
Reyes said his on-base percentage will improve.
“I know my on-base percentage is going to be way better than the .321 I had last year,” he said. “I will be more patient at the plate. Last year I wanted to get a hit every time at-bat. I was anxious because I didn’t have spring training, and I didn’t play much the year before. This year is going to be different.”
Wright put it perfectly, saying, “Jose he makes everybody else around him better.”
“Everything is perfect,” Reyes said.
Enjoy Reyes while you can, Mets’ fans. That blur you see leaving town will be Jose Reyes.