Mets icon Jose Reyes has slid head first into a successful music career

Former New York Mets great Jose Reyes has taken his retirement from the game of baseball in full stride as he has become a fully-fledged musical recording artist, which to no surprise to many, has long been a passion of the Mets former shortstop. Known by the nickname “La Melaza,” Reyes has released nine singles on streaming platforms since the beginning of 2020 and continues to share social media content of himself continuing to record music.

It’s important to note that the music scene is not unfamiliar to Reyes as he could be considered a seasoned veteran in the music industry when compared to Chicago White Sox third baseman Yoan Moncada. Moncada recently took the baseball world by storm over the past week with his vocals with the recent release of the salsa track titled “Desastre Personal.” While Moncada’s style leans more towards salsa, Reyes’s music would fall under the genres of dembow and trap.

When dating back to the beginning of Reyes’s musical ventures, he had begun making music as well as making cameos in music videos for other artists all the way back in 2011, which is also famously known as the year he won the National League batting title as a Met. Reyes’s first single was released in 2011 and it was appropriately titled “Bat Roto,” which translates to broken bat. There is also an awesome video of Reyes performing a freestyle during Spring Training in 2014 when he was a member of the Toronto Blue Jays, which displayed the lyrical ability, and potential that Reyes had as a musician.

Former New York Mets shortstop Jose Reyes is making a name for himself in the music industry after his retirement from baseball.

With baseball seemingly behind him currently after his announced retirement last July, Reyes has now tapped full-time into that creative affinity he has for music. Reyes has constructed his very own record label called “Siete Music” (which is named after his famous number seven) and he has a host of artists under the Siete Music umbrella that he frequently collaborates with and promotes.

It’s also noteworthy that the product that Reyes is putting out is nothing to sneeze at, as he’s racked up millions of views on his YouTube channel and millions of streams on Spotify as well. He also frequently reposts many other baseball players jamming out to his music on his Instagram stories, which has further driven up the popularity of his music among his peers as well as his fans.

I’ve personally become a fan of the music he has been releasing, with my latest favorite being the track titled, “Bandolero de Cuna.” The song contains Reyes rapping over a thumping beat about overcoming his struggles growing up in the Dominican Republic and the perseverance it took to get where he is at today, despite the people who have seemingly always cast doubt on him.

While we haven’t seen Reyes on the diamond since the end of the 2018 season, when we got one last look of both Reyes and David Wright together on the left side of the infield, it’s certainly great to see the former Met still in the limelight doing something he loves. While I selfishly would love to see Reyes reemerge as a member of the Mets coaching staff at some point due to his knowledge and enthusiasm he brings day in and day out, that is something that I can accept will be put on hold for the time being, as his music career is currently on the upswing.

Reyes’ number seven will certainly be retired at some point down the line as he is arguably the greatest all-around shortstop in Mets history. Even current starting pitcher Marcus Stroman opted to change his number from seven to zero after being acquired by the Mets in honor of Reyes’s legacy in New York. In line with David Wright’s number five, it’s highly unlikely that we ever see another player wear the number seven again in a Mets jersey.

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At the end of the day, you can’t help but be happy to watch Jose Reyes continue his professional and personal growth in his devoted passion for creating music. We can only hope that the day the Mets decide to retire Reyes’ number seven, we also will receive a bonus postgame concert from Reyes at Citi Field on a picturesque night in the middle of the summer.