Reese Kaplan -- The Best Mets Shortstops

For many years the role of shortstop in baseball was the man who directed the infield defense.  Anything done with his bat was icing on the cake.  Then along came guys like Alex Rodriguez and others who redefined that notion with shortstop also being part of a team's run production.  

For the Mets, they've been more of the former than the latter, so the list of top shortstops doesn't have Cooperstown votes...yet.  

If you say "Mets" and "Shortstop" then most people zoom right past the others and name Jose Reyes right off the bat.  The acrobatic fielder, amazing baserunner and decent hitter made himself into a force both on the field and at the plate.  

During his initial 9 years with the Mets he hit .292 while averaging 12 HRs, 65 RBIs and 57 SBs per full season.  Those are some mighty attractive numbers indeed.  He was a four-time All Star and in the MVP voting five times.  When he returned for ages 33 through 35 he was something of a shell of his former self, but he still caused pitchers and catchers anxiety whenever he reached base.  

Unlike the long term Ed Kranepool, no Mets list of shortstops would be legitimate without the inclusion of fiery Bud Harrelson.  He and Phillies rival Larry Bowa were of the same mold, more known for what they did in the field than what they did with their bats.  

Harrelson was not much of a hitter, a Mets career mark of just .234 with a single home run and 30 RBIs per season.  He would contribute an average of 14 SBs per season as well, but no one ever regarded Harrelson as much of an offensive threat.  Still, he was the heartbeat of the Mets infield for many years.

21 years after Harrelson left the Mets they had a resurgence of the defensive powerhouse in the form of Rey Ordonez.  He toiled for the team from 1996 through 2002, but the fact he came up to the plate was usually a sign for fans to hit the restroom or replenish their supply of beer and snacks.  

His Mets career .245 average was accompanied by a single home run per year and 46 RBIs but only 5 SBs.  He was fun to watch in the field but also reminiscent of the anemic Mets offensive lineups they sported for many years.

Lost somewhat in the shuffle was professional ballplayer Frank Taveras.  Also known more for defense than offense, I do recall vividly watching Taveras make opponents' infielders look silly on his drag bunts.  

A .262 hitter, he was not a lost cause up there like some of the others, plus he was a terror on the basepaths, stealing an average of 38 bases per year for the Mets during his 2+ seasons in Queens.  In his first full season of 1980 he hit .279 while pilfering 32 bases.  You can't sneeze at that kind of production.   

A few years back the Mets decided to turn things around, looking first for offense before defense.  They signed Asdrubal Cabrera as a free agent and he did deliver with the bat.  

During his two plus seasons at Citifield he hit an average of .274 with 23 HRs and 75 RBIs.  No one was ever going to nominate him for a Gold Glove, but he was certainly an offensive force from a position not normally associated with scoring runs.

Although he's only been here for a season and a fraction, you have to include the Mets' richest ever ballplayer, Francisco Lindor.  He struggled mightily upon his rookie introduction to Citifield and the National League.  However, his preseason in 2022 and the first few weeks of live games indicates the type of player he always was in Cleveland and what the Mets hoped he'd deliver in New York.  

While he doesn't meet the full two season minimum for this analysis, he's going to be here for a long time and finally fans have gotten a hint of what he's capable of doing in the field, on the basepaths and with the bat in his hand.  

Any other shortstops merit this kind of attention?  I don't consider the limited stints of folks like Howard Johnson, Kevin Mitchell nor others as true shortstop contenders.