Byrd is the Word

On February 1st, the Mets took a chance and signed Marlon Byrd to essentially fill the shoes of lefty-killer, Scott Hairston. The hope was that Byrd could somehow shake off the recent 50 game suspension for banned substances and return to his 2010 form, where he was selected as a participant in the MLB All-Star game. Few eyes were on him during a Spring Training that revolved around us gawking at Zack Wheeler and cringing every time an injured Met joined the MLB's version of The Walking Dead. Now, as Spring Training comes to a close, everyone knows about the Byrd.

The Boynton Beach native has entrenched himself as the everyday right-fielder for the Mets in 2013. The 35-year-old has posted a .357 batting average with ten of his hits going for extra bases. He is finally starting to look like the man who once patrolled center field for the Chicago Cubs.

He recently explained how he intends to thank the Mets for taking a chance on him. In an interview with WFAN, Byrd stated, "I needed one team to believe in me, and that was the Mets. They believe in me. They brought me in and trusted me. They're trusting me to be the player I was. They're trusting me to be the clean player that I am, and it's one of those things where you kind of want to go out there and work so hard and kind of reward the Mets for putting that trust in you."

Byrd spent time in the Mexican Pacific League playing winter ball in the wake of his outright release from the Boston Red Sox in 2012 and it seems to have paid off. He is in shape and out to prove that his recent years are more of an exception and not the rule. Many fans, including myself, never could have imagined that this signing could have brought a brighter outlook to the green grass of Citi Field.

He obviously isn't a long term answer to the outfield concerns that plague this team, but if the strong Spring Training translates into the regular season, he could really help lengthen the lineup with his power from the right side of the plate.