The Leadoff Debate
By: Josh Cohen
Who should be the Mets leadoff hitter this year…Luis Castillo or Jose Reyes???
Luis Castillo- Luis is looking to revive his career, not to mention ward off the boo birds that he was getting all of last season. When he played for the Marlins he was one of the best leadoff men in the game and still has the ability to do it again. He can slap the ball the other way, foul off a lot of pitches, and take pitches to build the pitch count and let all the hitters behind him see what that particular starter has to offer that particular day.
The biggest news for Luis is that he lost 15 pounds this offseason. This will lighten the load on his knees which means he will be able to run more. If he can slap the ball around, take pitches, get on base and can run he should be the leadoff man. He has some value in the 8 hole because he will be able to clear the pitcher, but I’d much rather see him get on base and get driven in by the solid bats behind him.
Jose Reyes- Reyes has gotten so much better as a leadoff man under the tutelage of Ricky Henderson. If he walks or hits a single it can easily become a triple in 2 pitches, but is he more valuable there or in the 3 hole driving in runs. He has great gap to gap power and the potential to be a 20-25 HR threat down the road. With his OBP moving up over .350 consistently over the past 3 seasons, he does have the ability to take the pitch, get on base, and obviously steal when it’s needed.
The two options seem to be either Castillo leading off with Reyes in the 3 spot or Reyes leading off with Castillo hitting second. If you told me Reyes would be hitting second I would be ok with that. The 3 spot is for your BEST overall hitter traditionally and Reyes doesn’t come close to that. If Reyes hits 3 he will not be able to take full advantage of his legs either, because someone in front of him (Beltran) picks his running spots a lot more. Ideally this would lead to Wright and Delgado getting more fastballs to swing at if Reyes is on alone or has a free base ahead of him.
Reyes leading off with Castillo hitting second makes the most sense to me. Call me traditional but you want your most explosive runner on base and getting the chance to make something happen. Castillo hitting behind him is very willing to take a pitch for Reyes to run on and will be able to bunt Reyes over if necessary. This will lead to a ton of RBI opportunities for Beltran, Wright, and Delgado. If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Last year, the Mets had the best record in baseball if games ended after 6 innings. They could obviously score some runs and get some leads last year. With the additions in our bullpen we should just leave the lineup the same and get into that bullpen and win some games.
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