Countdown to Opening Day: 6
March 26th, 2011 by slangon

Half a dozen more days.

Starting at short stop for the ’86 squad, position #6 on your scorecard, was Rafael Santana.

There seemed to be a lot of platooning on the 1986 Mets team, and short stop was one of the positions where that happened. Santana got the Opening Day start, though. Judging by his numbers from that season, I think you would categorize him as a defense first type player. He batted .218 on the season, with 1 homer, 11 doubles and 28 RBI. He also managed 16 errors in 111 starts at short, so maybe that line about him being a defense first player is not exactly correct.

This year, not surprisingly, my man Jose Reyes will be manning short, although for how much longer remains to be seen.

Most people who follow baseball are aware that the last two seasons have been pretty disappointing for Mets fans when it comes to Jose Reyes. Probably the only person more disappointed in Jose is Jose himself. I have a feeling that Reyes is going to bounce back with a vengeance this year. He came into camp 100% healthy which means that he can concentrate on baseball rather than trying to bounce back from injuries. I’m sure the fact that he could be hitting the free agent market isn’t lost on him either. I personally really hope that Sandy Alderson decides to extend his contract because the Mets without Reyes is not a team I want to think about.

Advantage 2011.

RF – 1986
CF – 2011
LF – 2011
SS – 2011
3B – ????
2B – ????
1B – ????
C – ????
P – ????

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