PORT ST. LUCIE — Jose Reyes is resigned to the fact his “crazy” spring training will last at least another week.
As his teammates boarded buses yesterday for the Mets’ departure to Florida’s Gulf Coast for two final Grapefruit League games, Reyes remained behind, determined to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Mets general manager Omar Minaya informed Reyes yesterday that the shortstop will begin the season on the disabled list, retroactive to March 26. That will put Reyes in position to join the team a week from tomorrow, against the Nationals at Citi Field.
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“They know I want to be there [Opening Day],” Reyes said. “But we have to make the right decision here. I haven’t played nine innings since last May, so after I get a feeling of that, everything should be fine.”
Reyes, who spent nearly three weeks at home resting last month after doctors detected an overactive thyroid, today will resume participating in minor league scrimmages. Minaya said the DL decision was both precautionary and a response to the fact Reyes needs more at-bats before playing in a major league game.
“If you bring him back too early, it’s going to be an injury risk,” Minaya said, referring to Reyes’ history of hamstring problems. “Secondly, you have to perform. Once he is in the major leagues, the lights are on, and there is a combination of at-bats we feel comfortable with that he needs to be ready.
“I don’t think it would be fair to put him out there right now and expect him to perform without really having a full spring training.”
Reyes isn’t the only Mets starter who will be watching on TV when the team’s first pitch of the new season is thrown on Monday. Daniel Murphy will remain at the minor league complex for the start of rehab on his right knee — he has a sprained MCL and will miss 2-6 weeks — and Carlos Beltran continues rehabbing his right knee after having undergone arthroscopic surgery that will keep him sidelined into May.
Minaya said the decision has not been reached on whether rookie Ruben Tejada will be selected to the roster for shortstop depth. Veteran Alex Cora is expected to start at shortstop in Reyes’ absence, but the team will need a backup. Manager Jerry Manuel dismissed the idea of heading north with Cora as the only shortstop.
Reyes, who did not play in a game yesterday, is 2-for-10 in two minor-league scrimmages. In each game he was limited to three innings playing the field. Reyes also has been prohibited from running hard beyond first base, but he bent that rule on Wednesday when he sprinted to second and dived head-first into the bag for a double.
“I’ve been doing everything with no problem,” Reyes said. “But there is baseball shape. That is the big key.”
For Reyes, it has been a spring in which he received a visit from federal investigators probing the activities of reputed HGH doctor Anthony Galea. Reyes said he told the feds he was Galea’s patient, but never received human growth hormone. Then came the diagnosis of increased thyroid levels and a return to New York, where he was told to rest. Reyes returned to camp on March 24.
“Crazy,” Reyes said. “So many things have happened to me, and this is spring training. I can’t imagine that.”