Forecasts for Fifteen: Matt Reynolds

[Centerfield]

Hi. I'm Matt Reynolds. Some of you guys may not know me yet (hell, I didn't even get my own "Forecasts for Fifteen" thread), but I am going to be the starting SS for your New York Mets before the season is over.



I know you guys are thinking about Wilmer and Tejada, and hoping for the best. I'm just gonna come out and say it. Wilmer ain't no shortstop. And Tejada sucks. I'm a solid defender. Over AA and AAA last year I was .343/.405/.454. For those arithmetically challenged, that's an .859 OPS.

This year, after you guys get done fucking around at the position, I'm going to take over. Wilmer will get traded. So will Murphy. Dilson Herrera and I will take over and hit 1-2 in the lineup.

You can put me down for .304/.353/.395.

[MFS62]

Unless Flores is terrible at short (and I don't think he will be), then Matt will just get a late season call up and hit .295/.355/.410. Then he'll patiently wait and see what happens to Murphy next off season. If Murphy is gone, there will be a game of musical chairs at second and short, and Matt could find himself a seat. If the Mets decide to move Murphy this season, then Matt will get some extended work. (same predicted result)

Later

[Edgy MD]

Centerfield wrote: Hi. I'm Matt Reynolds. Some of you guys may not know me yet (hell, I didn't even get my own "Forecasts for Fifteen" thread) ...

Know your place, Rook. We're doing this shit alphabetically.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Good spring and I think he gets Tejada's role. Tejada goes somewhere else.

Does a Woodwardly job filling in at short, second and third, pinch runs, stuff like that.

70 games, 200 PA, 5 HRs, 15 2B, 2 3B, 6 SB. .255/.310/.370

[Edgy MD]

I guess they're outwardly promoting the idea of a competition, as if the likelihood is 60% Flores, 30% Tejada, and 10% Reynolds, but I'm guessing the internal likelihood is drawn up more like 70-20-10, and one or two in the brain trust are leaning 90-8-2.

So, yeah, I kind of agree that Tejada has a better chance of losing his backup job to Reynolds than reclaiming his starter's job from Flores. But I hope they all shatter land speed records.

[nymr83]

i like the bold predictions. and i like Reynolds.

[Benjamin Grimm]

The Mets have a lot of potential middle infield options coming along over the next couple of years. (I think that, as much as anything, is why they didn't feel that they had to go all in for that Cuban shortstop.) I suspect that Matt Reynolds will be one of those who sticks around, either as a regular SS or 2B or as a supersub. (I can see him possibly spelling David Wright at third base from time to time.)

[nymr83]

Many things are possible with the Mets' multitude of talented young players. Reynolds could see time at SS and move to 3B in a few years for Rosario/Cechiani with Wright moving across the diamond to finish up his career... I would hope we don't keep Wright at 3B forever as a ceremonial statue long past the time he can fake the position the way certain other New York teams would have...

[Centerfield]

Edgy MD wrote: Centerfield wrote: Hi. I'm Matt Reynolds. Some of you guys may not know me yet (hell, I didn't even get my own "Forecasts for Fifteen" thread) ... Know your place, Rook. We're doing this shit alphabetically.

Doh. RMPL.

[Centerfield]

Nymr83 wrote: i like the bold predictions. and i like Reynolds.

You know, as much as the last few seasons have sucked, one of the cool things is that we've had lots of unexpected great performances. Dickey, Marlon Byrd, deGrom last year. Even Harvey was unexpected in that I never thought he would be as good as he is.

This year I'm putting my money on Reynolds as the out of nowhere guy.

[MFS62]

I hope he becomes our Gil McDougald - a good, versatile, infielder who is a member of at least 5 World Series Championship teams.

Later

[Guest d'Kong76]

Don't think we'll see him until summer due to someone getting hurt.

[Lefty Specialist]

MFS62 wrote: I hope he becomes our Gil McDougald - a good, versatile, infielder who is a member of at least 5 World Series Championship teams. Later

So we're trading him, then?

[Edgy MD]

[ashie62]

Goes north.

[Theoldmole]

Like Gil McDougald? Does he throw like a girl?

[MFS62]

TheOldMole wrote: Like Gil McDougald? Does he throw like a girl?

Funny you should mention that. After he retired, I spoke to him on one of the early sports talk shows (Bill Mazer?) and asked him about how he prepared his arm because the throws from short, second and third were different. He said it took only a few throws during infield to prepare for the position he would play that day. But he said he adopted a basic throwing throwing motion so the differences weren't that harmful to his arm.

Later

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Midseason callup. I can see something vaguely Woodwardy here.

55 G, 101 PA, 12 R, 1 HR, 13 RBI, .245/.292/.347, 11 XBH

[Centerfield]

One more note, Matt Reynolds was one of the compensation picks we got for losing Reyes. How sweet would it be if he actually became the real deal.

[Edgy MD]

Plawecki was the other. Not to ask for too much, but how doubly sweet that would be?

[Edgy MD]

I'm Matt Reynolds. NOW my name has come around alphabetically.



I'm a non-roster invitee raking to the tune of .471 / .500 / .647 // 1.147 in my first 18 plate appearances this spring.

I like that tune and I'm hoping it lends itself well to an extended re-mix.

[Frayed Knot]

I don't think he makes the team as a bench player - which means he doesn't make the team.
Or at least not initially. Obviously what happens at SS depends a whole lot on how the great Flores experiment goes. But until that sorts itself out (in one fashion or another) he'll get everyday work in Vegas waiting for a change in Queens.

[MFS62]

He was fifth or sixth in (combined) BA in the minors last year. (As per BA).
I hope his average would be up there again, but that he doesn't have enough at bats in the minors this year to find his way back to that list.

Later

[Frayed Knot]

MFS62 wrote: He was fifth or sixth in (combined) BA in the minors last year. (As per BA).

And that BA, in his 2nd full year in pro ball, was 118 points above his 1st year BA, begging the question: which year is the norm and which the outlier? The answer probably lies somewhere in between.
Then, going beyond BA, the walk rate (.062) was a shade below average and his power a bit more than a shade - especially as most of his XBHs in 2014 came while he was at Vegas's hitting-happy environment (25 XBHs at AAA vs just 9 at AA despite a near equal number of ABs)

Bottom line: 2014 was a nice year for Reynolds but I still don't think we know what we have in him yet.

[Guest d'Kong76]

We need to wrap this up, ST games are almost half done.
Scales could tip more his way!