Mets starting lineup of the all-time greats

What would the greatest New York Mets starting lineup of all-time look like? You probably already have an idea in your head of who might start at each position. But in what order would you put them?

It’s not an overly controversial discussion to get into. I think most Mets fans can agree on who belongs in the starting nine with maybe only a few changes along the way.

In an attempt to build the ultimate Mets starting lineup, this is the lineup card I’ve decided to submit.

Leading off for the NY Mets is SS Jose Reyes

There is no easy choice to bat leadoff for the Mets than Jose Reyes. He is such a tremendous outlier at shortstop already as the best to ever play the position for this organization—the next decade of Francisco Lindor pending.

At his best, Reyes was one of the best base thieves in the game. He led the league each season from 2005-2007 in this category. In 2011, he became the first player in Mets history to win a batting title.

Career totals with the Mets include a .282/.334/.433 slash line, 1534 hits, and 408 stolen bases. These numbers are dragged down quite a bit because of his weak final three seasons in the majors. Looking exclusively at his prime seasons from 2003-2011, we get a much better picture of what Reyes could do in this all-time franchise starting lineup.

In those early years, Reyes hit .292/.341/.441 with 1300 of his career hits. Included in them are 222 doubles, 99 triples, and 81 home runs.

Any Mets lineup with Reyes at the top has the immediate potential to take the lead. A single and a stolen base is never out of the question. Or maybe, if he’s feeling especially eager to score a run, a leadoff triple can put the opposing team in some early danger.