From a strictly baseball standpoint, bringing back Jose Reyes is a good move. He hit .274 last year with 24 stolen bases in 116 games. The Mets gave up nothing to get him and only have to give him the minimum salary. But then there’s the reason he was so readily available – a 51-game suspension over allegations of domestic violence.
Reyes was one of my favorite players when he was on the Mets the first time. I frequently wore my Reyes shirt to games. I thought he got a bum rap after he left the game early to preserve his 2011 batting title. There’s a reason people still talk about Ted Williams staying in the game rather than leaving early to protect his .400 batting average in 1941 – most people aren’t Ted Williams. Then it turned out that the player Reyes beat out for the batting title, Ryan Braun, was the one who wasn’t “playing the game the right way.”
When Reyes became a free agent, I wanted the Mets to re-sign him, and while letting him go turned out to be the right move, the Mets still should have traded him during the season for top prospects rather than settling for two draft picks (which turned out to be Kevin Plawecki and Matt Reynolds).
When Reyes played his first game back at Citi Field after leaving the Mets, I was there, in my Reyes shirt, to stand and cheer.
Last October, Reyes was arrested for allegedly attacking his wife. I threw out my Reyes shirt.
The closest I came to no longer rooting for a team after they signed a controversial player was when the Knicks signed Latrell Sprewell after he choked his coach. But I eventually ended up rooting for Sprewell as a Knick.
The Mets and Reyes are saying all the right things. He is remorseful, he deserves a second chance, it was one mistake, etc. Maybe it’s all true – or not. All I can do is hope it’s true that it was a one-time mistake and that Reyes is truly remorseful about changing his life for the better.
The one upside of all this is that MLB now has a policy in which players can be suspended over charges of domestic violence even if the charges are dropped, as in the case of Reyes, whose wife refused to cooperate with the investigation, or if there is not even an arrest, as in the case of Aroldis Chapman. In the past, MLB and fans could rationalize that if charges were dropped or not filed, then maybe the player did nothing wrong. But now Reyes and Chapman, while no longer under criminal investigation, both agreed to suspensions from MLB.
Reyes lost about $7 million in salary, which does not figure to unduly affect someone with a $106 million contract, but is still a significant penalty, along with having to sit out the 51 games.
It’s easier to be willing to give someone a second chance when there have been real consequences for the transgression.
While it’s good that MLB is directly addressing charges of domestic violence, the Daily News’ Kristie Ackert noted when Reyes was suspended that the penalty was less than it would have been for a PED suspension, so there is clearly still room for debate as to how long these suspensions should last.
Ackert’s column also details the charges that were filed against Reyes:
Reyes, 32, was arrested in Hawaii for allegedly grabbing his wife and shoving her into a sliding glass door at a hotel in Maui. According to a recording of a 911 call released by the police, a hotel security guard reported that Reyes’ wife had injuries to her leg and scratches on her neck. Reyes was released after posting $1,000 bail and was ordered to stay away from his wife for three days. He pleaded not guilty to abusing a family or household member.
The criminal charges were eventually dropped after his wife was deemed an uncooperative witness, but she can re-file charges until 2017.
Let’s hope that the only headlines Reyes makes going forward are on the field.
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