Ben Shpigel of The New York Times caught up with Mets manager Jerry Manuel recently, who stressed the point that there needn’t be a designated captain in the Mets clubhouse. The core of the team (you know, the one that a certain prominent radio host spent weeks saying should be broken up) was said to be the key to their success, with guys like Johan Santana, David Wright, Carlos Delgado, and Carlos Beltran being mentioned. Jerry argues that Jose Reyes will soon be ready to join that group and become a leader in the clubhouse and on the field:
“Oh, I consider him becoming one — no question,” Manuel said Tuesday morning after helping to unload a City Harvest delivery truck at the Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen in Manhattan. “I think that’s the next level for him, to add responsibility to him. That, to me, is maturation. You can be 50 years old and have no responsibility so you never mature. But if you have some responsibilities, then the maturation process takes over.”
He goes on to say that he expects Reyes to call defensive positioning, among other new tasks and responsibilities.
This report makes for interesting reading, and I suggest you check it out. Reyes is a fascinating player, who’s become quite the lightning rod around the league for his enthusiasm on the field and dances on the top step of the dugout. He’s no doubt an explosive player who for the most part makes the Mets offense go, but has caught flak from the likes of the Cardinals after the ‘06 NLCS and the Phillies the last couple of years. I understand the argument that he needs to mature a little bit and start to emerge as a leader of the team, and I’m all for it, as long as he never loses sight of the fun side of baseball and why not, tweak an opponent or two in the process.
Pete Lappin (3)
