Reese Kaplan - Two Sides of the Same Coin

Once upon a time there was a very talented professional athlete who had major flaws in his game, but for some reason had a knack for coming up big when given the chance to play.  This athlete had a few starts and stops along the way but finally was given the opportunity to play.  While the results weren’t always pretty, the fact remains he did win and helped lead his team into contention.

Obviously I’m not talking about Jordany Valdespin since he has not been given the chance to play (and the Mets haven't sniffed contention since the back-to-back epic collapses of 2007 and 2008).  Rather, it's another now-former New York pariah named Tim Tebow.  As polarizing a figure as you will ever see on a professional sports field, Tebow was unceremoniously dumped in a minor trade to the NY Jets when they brought in a Hall of Fame talent by the name of Peyton Manning to take over for him.  No one can begrudge Denver for trying to put the best team possible on the field.

Then his unfortunate NY Jets tenure began.  The front office probably thought all of the jerseys and tickets that would be sold with Tebow wearing green and white.  They had visions of a wildcat offense with two quarterbacks lined up to confuse the opposing defenses.  Secretly they would probably admit that having another NFL starter around might motivate the incumbent Mark Sanchez into spending more time refining his game and less time posing for magazine photos.

Apparently they never consulted the head coach, Rex Ryan, about these grandiose plans.  Since Ryan was not in control of who was on the roster, instead he did what he could to minimize the visibility (and impact) that Tebow had on the Jets’ moribund offense.  When Sanchez was throwing interceptions and enjoying the view of the sky while flat on his back, the cries were heard throughout Jets Nation to play Tebow, but they fell upon deaf ears. By the end of the season you had the illustrious Greg McElroy taking more than twice the number of snaps as the former Heisman trophy winner.  Tebow was buried on the depth charts, running occasionally, blocking and doing some special teams work.  Ryan had succeeded in neutralizing a flawed but potent weapon by not playing him.  At the end of the season the Jets signed another former starting QB and drafted yet another one.  Tebow was unceremoniously kicked to the curb.

That history lesson brings us to the present day with Mr. Valdespin.  He too is a polarizing figure that fans either love or hate.  He has some great talents but Terry Collins has taken a page out of Ryan’s playbook and marginalized his role on the team.  Even last year when the outfield was facing injuries to Andres Torres, Mike Baxter and Kirk Nieuwenhuis (along with the ongoing incompetence of Jason Bay), only ONCE during the entire season did Valdespin get three consecutive starts.  This year Collins was probably inwardly cursing when Valdespin pretty much led all players in offense in Spring Training and thus cemented a spot on the roster.  The irony is that Valdespin has not been benched for baseball equivalent of Peyton Manning.  He’s behind the ilk of Collin Cowgill, Kirk Nieuwenhuis, Juan Lagares, Mike Baxter, PED-abuser Marlon Byrd and now the immortal Rick Ankiel – a group of players who will only get into Cooperstown if they buy a ticket.

This weekend’s HRgate in Pittsburgh was yet another in a long line of incidents in which it’s become clear there is no future for this manager/player combination.  What’s worse is that it’s rubbed off on the other players.  When Valdespin was plunked for his celebratory antics not a single person from the manager to the bat boy went to see if he was alright nor raised an eyebrow at the pitcher.  Yes, Valdespin broke an unwritten rule and the retaliation was expected.  However, it seemed highly ironic that Valdespin is the one pilloried for being JV1 – 1 man and 24 teammates – yet everyone did exactly what they chastise Valdespin for doing – not behaving as a member of a team.  Even the newly named Captain did nothing to show solidarity with his teammate.

Just as Tebow was a player who had a way of coming up big when it was needed, Valdespin also brings that intangible energy to an otherwise lifeless team.  However, the Mets have succeeded over the years in systematically stripping away anyone who does not walk the straight and narrow.  Maybe it's a cultural overreaction to the Gooden/Strawberry/Mitchell/Coleman/Cone era where the headlines were made for off-the-field behavior as often as for what transpired between the white lines.  Consequently, it's now time for them to demote Valdespin to play every day to build up his trade value, then flip him for someone with all the vibrancy of Lucas Duda.  He may blossom in another organization or he may fizzle.  He probably has the greater potential to become the next Manny Alexander than the next Manny Ramirez, but right now he’s simply wasting a roster spot in Collins’ doghouse.