Right after the season was over, the Mets did the smart thing, and they picked up Jose Reyes option for the 2017 season.  Reyes is a player that gives the Mets depth, and he provides insurance for some key positions.

Should David Wright go down again, we saw Reyes can handle playing third base.  Should Asdrubal Cabrera have another injury plagued year, Reyes can spell him on a number of days in order to keep Cabrera fresh.  With an offseason to work on it, Reyes can also make himself a capable defender at second base and quite possibly the outfield.  Second base is interesting because the Mets do not know if Neil Walker can return or what Walker could provide with a surgically repaired back.  With that in mind, there has been discussion about Reyes possibly being the everyday second baseman.  He shouldn’t.

The main reason is Reyes has essentially become a much faster with less power version of Wilmer Flores at the plate.

Both players absolutely maul left-handed pitching while they are feeble hitters from the right-hand side of the plate.  Without telling you who was who, here are their splits from the 2016 season:

To show this is part of a larger trend, here are the numbers from the 2015 season as well:

If you had trouble deciphering which one was Reyes and which one was Flores that is the point.  If you thought Player A was Flores and Player B was Reyes, you were correct.  After reviewing the numbers, wouldn’t it be fair to say that at least offensively Flores has become the better player?

Now, there are some caveats to this.  In 2015, Reyes only played in 116 games due to injury and trade.  In 2016, he only played in 60 games due to his suspension and his eventual release.  When you have smaller sample sizes, you tend to see greater fluctuations in the statistics.  It is an important caveat when you consider Reyes has largely been platoon neutral in his career.  Naturally, you would want to rely upon the splits from a player’s entire 14 year career than from two abbreviated seasons.

However, you cannot ignore trends, especially trends from a player that is going to be turning 34 next season.  In his four years since leaving the Mets, Reyes has been a .286/.334/.409 hitter who has averaged 29 doubles, four triples, nine homers, and 50 RBI with 27 stolen bases a season.  Compare that to the .292/.341/.441 hitter who averaged 25 doubles, 11 triples, nine homers, and 47 RBI with 41 stolen bases during Reyes’ first tour of duty with the Mets.  Fact is, Reyes is a different player than the one we knew.

And no, this isn’t a case of Reyes being a different player in New York.  In his only year with the Marlins, he hit .287/.347/.433 with 37 doubles, 12 triples, 11 homers, and 57 RBI with 40 stolen bases.  In Reyes’ first year with the Blue Jays, he hit .296/.353/.427 with 20 doubles, no triples, 1o homers, 37 RBI, and 15 stolen bases.  That 2013 season with the Blue Jays was an injured plagued one for Reyes as he only played in 93 games.  He hasn’t been the same player after that season becoming just a .279/.321/.400 hitter in the three subsequent years.

Overall, Reyes is still a talented player that has a lot to offer a team.  However, Reyes no longer has the skills that made him an All Star caliber player.  While he still has speed, he no longer has elite speed.  While he can play the middle infield, he no longer has the range he once had.  While he can still hit for some power, he no longer has the ability to consistently get on base.  Long story short, Reyes is a player in decline.  It’s what happens to players in their mid 30s.

Despite the decline, Reyes should be a valuable contributor to the Mets in 2017.  His ability to play across the diamond and use his speed is a real asset.  Still, you will get diminishing returns playing him everyday.  You will notice the low OBP and his platoon splits.  This is why Reyes needs to be a utility player for the Mets next season.