Off Day WAR: The Best And Worst Seasons By Mets Shortstops

by James Kannengieser on May 21, 2009 12:00 PM EDT

It's been over two weeks since the last off day, and the Mets really need one. The fans need one too. Hopefully the off day WAR series will provide a nice diversion. Next up is the shortstop position. Here are the top 10 seasons, per Sean Smith's WAR database:

Rank	Year	Player	WAR
1	2006	Jose Reyes	6.2
2	2007	Jose Reyes	5.6
3	2008	Jose Reyes	5.6
4	1971	Bud Harrelson	3.3
5	1969	Bud Harrelson	2.6
6	1999	Rey Ordonez	2.6
7	1970	Bud Harrelson	2.5
8	1973	Bud Harrelson	2.3
9	1976	Bud Harrelson	2.1
10	1989	Kevin Elster	2.1

And the bottom 10:

Rank	Year	Player	WAR
38	1985	Rafael Santana	-0.5
39	1984	Jose Oquendo	-0.6
40	2001	Rey Ordonez	-0.6
41	2002	Rey Ordonez	-0.7
42	1963	Al Moran	-1.0
43	1983	Jose Oquendo	-1.0
44	1994	Jose Vizcaino	-1.2
45	1998	Rey Ordonez	-1.4
46	1964	Roy McMillan	-1.9
47	1981	Frank Taveras	-1.9

Some brief notes:

He has only played four full seasons, but I'll say that Jose Reyes is the best shortstop in team history. Bud Harrelson's longevity is impressive, and he was a valuable asset to those late 1960s/early 1970s teams, but Reyes's past three seasons have been outstanding. The logical thing to do with the best shortstop in team history, who is just 25 years old and under contract for far below his market value: trade him of course!
Rey Ordonez had the biggest gap between best and worst seasons, at 4.0 WAR. TotalZone loved Rey-O's glove in 1999, to the tune of 33 runs saved above average.
The Mets fielded some awful shortstops in the 1980s. Current Twins manager Ron Gardenhire was worth 0.1 WAR for the Mets in 1982.
The Melvin Mora for Mike Bordick trade in 2000 turned out quite poorly. Bordick's Met performance was replacement level, while Mora was worth 27.9 WAR for the Orioles from 2000-2008. In fairness to royal douchelord Steve Phillips, I don't think anyone predicted that from Mora.

Tweet Comment 40 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

I miss Jose already

I hope he’ll be back soon.

"The definition of edge is going out there and getting a few wins, and then all of a sudden you don’t have to worry about anyone talking about edge anymore," Wright said. "That's a thing in the past. Go ask Omar about that."

by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 12:03 PM EDT reply actions

I miss Jose when he does not bat in an inning

Unlike heart-less dudes who hate New York…like Voltron and Dub. When they come up to bat I change the station!

Grission and Husart - that is either the non-union Mexican equivelant of "Starsky and Hutch" or the key to winning the World Series.

by IanB in MD on May 21, 2009 12:28 PM EDT up reply actions

I have a little picture of Nate McLouth's head on a popsicle stick

that I put over the screen whenever Beltran is up to bat. That was I can pretend our center fielder is a “winning player”.

by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 12:37 PM EDT up reply actions 3 recs

LOL Rec'd

"All energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet

What a fool I was to defy him"

-HST

by Mark Himmelstein on May 21, 2009 4:58 PM EDT up reply actions

for what its worth

I hated the Bordick trade at the time and think it is def one of the top three worst trades in Mets history. Yes we have given up far better players than Mora but getting the useless Bordick may very well have cost us a world title.

by Endys Game on May 21, 2009 12:13 PM EDT reply actions

but Bordick hit a HR in his first AB as a Met!!!

Seriously, living in Baltimore, I have had plenty of opportunities to feel terrible about the Mora trade. He is a good person (at least he’s never been caught or tested positive) and plays some good baseball. This year I think he will be some tempting mid-year trade bait. (Hey, what about Mora for Wright? Straight up. Dub lacks grission, and needs to go!)

Grission and Husart - that is either the non-union Mexican equivelant of "Starsky and Hutch" or the key to winning the World Series.

by IanB in MD on May 21, 2009 12:27 PM EDT up reply actions

Especially considering

that Bordick sucked so bad in the World Series, that it left Kurt Abbot in the game belly flopping at Soho’s grounder in game 5.

by Mount17 on May 21, 2009 12:29 PM EDT up reply actions

Ah...Luis Soho

He was a winner. How many rings does he have? Two? He is a gamer with grit.

Other than the improbability of that Mets team getting there, the 2000 World Series sucked.

Grission and Husart - that is either the non-union Mexican equivelant of "Starsky and Hutch" or the key to winning the World Series.

by IanB in MD on May 21, 2009 1:29 PM EDT up reply actions

Luis Sojo has FOUR of TEH RINGZ.

He is the very definition of a winning player.

by JoshNY on May 21, 2009 3:40 PM EDT up reply actions

Damn

How is he not in the Hall of Fame?

Grission and Husart - that is either the non-union Mexican equivelant of "Starsky and Hutch" or the key to winning the World Series.

by IanB in MD on May 21, 2009 4:54 PM EDT up reply actions

I can only guess it must be an oversight on the part of the voters

Maybe they didn’t think to vote for him because they assumed he was already in?

by JoshNY on May 21, 2009 5:16 PM EDT up reply actions

FYI

If I did the math correctly, the mets are 1-4 in the games before a scheduled off-day. This could explain the rampant negativity and the “Scotties” around here on the off-days. But this feature is always awesome.

by meigs1414 on May 21, 2009 12:14 PM EDT reply actions

Fernando Martinez

a little bit off topic, but do people think we will see Fernando Martinez soon. the mets look like a small ball team this year and i think he would fit into that system well. we also need someone to play right field everyday,

by jhroac02 on May 21, 2009 1:21 PM EDT reply actions

On one condition

That Gary or Keith promise to call him “Fartinez” and not “F-Mart.”

Grission and Husart - that is either the non-union Mexican equivelant of "Starsky and Hutch" or the key to winning the World Series.

by IanB in MD on May 21, 2009 1:27 PM EDT up reply actions

who came up with "Fartinez"?

I want to shake your hand

by metsjetsnets on May 21, 2009 4:43 PM EDT up reply actions

Mets By The Numbers

was the first place I saw it

by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 4:43 PM EDT up reply actions

I wish it had been me

Im not that sharp.

Grission and Husart - that is either the non-union Mexican equivelant of "Starsky and Hutch" or the key to winning the World Series.

by IanB in MD on May 21, 2009 4:55 PM EDT up reply actions

I absolutely

agree. It must be written up in blood.

"I was so frustrated [Saturday], I [could have said] anything," ~Oliver Perez

by Lance Johnson on May 21, 2009 6:01 PM EDT up reply actions

I kinda wish it could happen

If only so we could put an over/under on how long before Gary stops giggling like a schoolgirl after saying it.

"All energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet

What a fool I was to defy him"

-HST

by Mark Himmelstein on May 21, 2009 8:31 PM EDT up reply actions

Fernandomania: Can you feel it??

The Mets roster has been confusing all year but it’s an outright disaster right now with the injuries

It’s quite possible that calling up Martinez would only make things messier in the short team but, nonetheless, if all the backups continue to fail, there could be an open door for Martinez very soon.

by TheBigStapler on May 21, 2009 1:38 PM EDT up reply actions

but the mets cant go with sheffield, pagan and murphy. while i like murphy the best out of those three, right now we also need a 1st baseman
people say he is a star in the making and right now it might be something to get the mets moving upwards.

by jhroac02 on May 21, 2009 1:51 PM EDT up reply actions

.293/.344/.558

Would you replace Pagan or Reed with Martinez, knowing that he wouldn’t start full-time? I’m not sure I would but I’m also getting antsy during his hot streak.

by TheBigStapler on May 21, 2009 4:24 PM EDT up reply actions

I know I wouldn't

If he’s coming up I want him to play every day. I know it’s tempting to say “fuck it” and call him up right now while he’s running hot (2-4 with that 2B and 1 R today, by the by), but I still think they should give him maybe one more month before making the call. I know the offense is in a tight spot right now but I don’t necessarily just want to throw him into the fire.

by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 4:29 PM EDT up reply actions

Jose Reyes = the Man

I forget, did we do 3rd base yet? Despite it’s reputation as a black hole, I feel like Wright isn’t going to dominate the 3rd base list quite as much, b/c we have had some good seasons there – HoJo, Fonzie, and Ventura off the top of my head.

by cjmulrain on May 21, 2009 1:59 PM EDT reply actions

Yes

Dub was four of the top ten. Here.

by Catsmeat Potter-Pirbright on May 21, 2009 2:04 PM EDT up reply actions

right

I even commented on it. That’s pretty much how I thought it would look though, with Wright’s seasons sprinkled throughout the top 10, instead of occupying the top 4 spots.

by cjmulrain on May 21, 2009 2:13 PM EDT up reply actions

people forget how phenomenal HoJo's 1989 was

by JoshNY on May 21, 2009 3:42 PM EDT up reply actions

Wasn't 89 the year Whitey Herzog...

confiscated HoJo’s bat and sent it to the crime lab, accusing HoJo of corking?

Living in St. Louis as a Mets fan during the “pond scum” era… good times.

"Those who fear disorder more than injustice inevitably produce more of both." -- Rev. William Coffin

by dcrockett17 on May 21, 2009 4:38 PM EDT up reply actions

ooo thats rough

good for you, man

by meigs1414 on May 21, 2009 4:43 PM EDT up reply actions

I started following the Mets in '79...

I was 8 and Frank Tavares was my favorite player. By 81 I understood the the game a bit.

I hadn’t thought about Tavares for a long time, and harbored no illusions that he was a good player, but damn. He was wretched in 81.

I don’t know if I needed to know that.

"Those who fear disorder more than injustice inevitably produce more of both." -- Rev. William Coffin

by dcrockett17 on May 21, 2009 4:35 PM EDT reply actions

I love the Off Day WAR

It’s a great way to brush up on some basic Mets history. It’s a Sabermetric take on the past. I like the perspective. More often than not, it just reinforces what we already know (Piazza rules, so does Jose Reyes) but I still like seeing it broken down into numbers by year.

by TheBigStapler on May 21, 2009 4:43 PM EDT reply actions

Sigh

I like Jose Reyes. He makes me happy. Get well soon Jose.

"All energy flows according to the whims of the great magnet

What a fool I was to defy him"

-HST

by Mark Himmelstein on May 21, 2009 4:59 PM EDT reply actions

If he gets well, it will be in spite of the organization

which STILL will not put him on the DL and STILL has Martinez on the 25-man. And I don’t mean Fernando.

I will not allow the denigration of the life essence

by GenJackRipper on May 21, 2009 5:21 PM EDT up reply actions

'Gardy'

His 0.1 WAR in ’82 has certainly influenced the way Twins infielders play the game.

by All Shook Down on May 21, 2009 5:21 PM EDT reply actions

I like to think

Gardy puts “0.1” on a blackboard before every Twins game, as a grission motivator of sorts.

by James Kannengieser on May 21, 2009 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions

I loved Melvin Mora then and still do. That trade is up there with Dykstra for Juan Samuel. Mora had a gun too and could actually throw people out on fly balls with a man on third.

by davejustdave on May 21, 2009 7:46 PM EDT reply actions

That 1999 season with Ordonez at SS, saving 33 runs….unreal. Not surprised Reyes is easily the best SS in Mets history…and if he ever makes only 4 errors in a season, he’ll be worth 10-12 WAR.

by Fucilli5 on May 21, 2009 7:49 PM EDT reply actions