Based upon Jose Reyes' statistical resume -- and the length of his contract --it's safe to say that Toronto Blue Jays fans won't have to worry about the shortstop position for years to come.
The first thing that was apparent from his introductory media conference was his infectious smile and upbeat personality, a 180 degree swing from the sullen Yunel Escobar whose short Blue Jays career ended in controversy.
But what will be on display, once this revamped roster gets together in February, is that Reyes' overall skill set is vastly superior to anything the Jays are used to.
For comparison sake it's not Escobar that we should be comparing Reyes to, but his fellow countryman -- and member of the Level Of Excellence at Rogers Centre -- Tony Fernandez, the franchise's all-time hits and games played leader.
Both Fernandez and Reyes are Dominican-born switch-hitters and slick fielders that can get to most balls hit to either side. They are both gap hitters that can provide the occasional home run, and smart base-runners. And both have been all-stars on four occasions.
The best way to compare these two shortstops is statistically after 10 seasons.
At a cursory glance, there are numbers that are similar (hits, doubles, RBI, WAR) but also show a distinct difference in the two players (runs, triples, home runs, OPS and steals).
But Reyes and Fernandez have one major difference; they hit from different spots in the batting order.
Reyes has been a lead-off hitter in 86 per cent of the games he's played in during his career, whereas Fernandez hit further down in the lineup for 52 per cent of his first 10 years.
The main offensive difference between the two falls squarely in the speed department. Not that Fernandez didn't possess above-average wheels, but he wasn't even close to the jack rabbit that Reyes has been since coming into the Majors with the Mets in 2003 as a 20-year old.
http://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/2013/0 ... es_carson/
