Except for the Jerry Manuel experiment in 2010, Jose Reyes has spent the vast majority of his career as a leadoff hitter.  Throughout his career, he’s been the prototypical leadoff hitter.  He was the guy that got on base and would wreck havoc on the basepaths.  He’d score from first on a double.  He’d steal second and score from second on a single.  He’d steal third and he would either score on a sacrifice fly or get a pitcher to balk him home.  This is why Reyes has lead off his entire career, and this is why Terry Collins made him the leadoff hitter when Reyes played his first game with the Mets on July 5th.

However, Reyes isn’t the same player anymore.  He’s gone from a .341 OBP and averaging 37 stolen bases a year with the Mets to a player with a .334 OBP who averages 27 stolen bases a year.  Last year, he had a .310 OBP and 24 stolen bases while playing in two of the best hitter’s parks in all of baseball.  Simply put, Reyes is no longer the same player, which means he shouldn’t be treated as such.  It might be time for him to be moved out of the leadoff spot.

The leadoff spot should return to Curtis Granderson.  The same Curtis Granderson who was the leadoff hitter that went to the World Series last year.  The same leadoff hitter that needed just a little over one season to match Reyes’ team record for home runs leading off a game.  This is the same Granderson who has a higher career OBP than Reyes and who had a .364 OBP for the Mets last year.  After a tough May, Granderson has returned to that form with him hitting .276/.386/.496 with six homers and 11 RBI.

Overall, Granderson is a better hitter than Reyes is right now.  He’s a better hitter than what Reyes has been the past few seasons.  The Mets were at their most successful with Granderson leading off.  It’s time to restore him to to leadoff spot.