Colorado Rockies Plan for Ian Desmond Return Amid Mark Reynolds Hot Streak
The Colorado Rockies could use Ian Desmond in the outfield upon his return from the DL to accommodate hot-hitting first baseman Mark Reynolds.
A few months ago, Mark Reynolds didn’t even know for sure if he would make the Colorado Rockies‘ roster. The veteran slugger signed a minor league deal at the beginning of February, hoping to stick with the team for another year after knocking 14 home runs and posting an .806 OPS for Colorado in 2016.
Reynolds’ presence suddenly became much more important in the wake of the spring training injury to Ian Desmond. The Rockies inked Desmond to a five-year deal to play first base, a move that raised some eyebrows around the league. Now their experiment would have to wait as Desmond recovered from surgery to repair his broken hand.
After a decade in Major League Baseball, most know what to expect from Mark Reynolds. He can hit the ball out of the park at a rapid pace, but he’ll strike out with similar regularity. From 2008 to 2011 he averaged 35 homers per season, but led the majors in strikeouts all four years, averaging 208. In fact, his 223 strikeouts in 2009 are a single-season record, and three of the current top 10 single-season strikeout totals belong to Reynolds.
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However, the Rockies have been getting a lot more of Reynolds’ good qualities than his drawbacks through the first few weeks of the new season. He’s belted six long balls and driven in 18 runs in 20 games, while rocking a .329/.385/.657 slash line over 78 plate appearances. Only Nolan Arenado has a higher OPS on the club right now (1.061). Reynolds has also been limiting strikeouts by his standards, fanning at a 20.5 percent rate (career 30.9 percent).
Colorado isn’t going to bench Reynolds in the middle of such of torrid stretch, but the imminent return of Desmond – in early May, potentially – could complicate things. According to The Denver Post, Rockies manager Bud Black suggested that Desmond could receive playing time in the outfield in order to fit both him and Reynolds in the lineup. Black didn’t sound perturbed by the notion of having too many productive players to juggle:
“Isn’t that a good thing when players come back?” Black said. “It’s a good thing, not a dilemma. Do we have to shuffle some things at times? Absolutely. But, hey, I can’t wait to get Ian Desmond back. You know why? He’s a good player.”
Though a shortstop by trade, Desmond transitioned to the outfield last year for the Rangers and didn’t embarrass himself. After making a $70 million investment in him, the Rockies will be especially motivated to get Desmond on the field every day. His newfound (and growing) versatility will help in that regard.
Of course, Desmond in the outfield could spell a potential roadblock for David Dahl, who is also hoping to return from an injury next month. The Rockies will cross that bridge when they come to it, and it’s safe to say the 23-year-old will get his opportunities too.
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Reynolds won’t hit like this all year, and there will be times when the strikeouts begin to overshadow the power output. Fortunately, Colorado can play the hot hand with the pieces they have.