Jose Reyes

Describes motivation process for creativity with emphasis on intrinsic motivation by Corey K Katir

For New York Mets fans, the worst news to emerge on Sunday, on the eve of baseballas winter meetings, wasnat the fact that shortstop Jose Reyes jumped ship via free agency and signed a six-year, $106 million deal with the division rival Miami Marlins a although that was plenty bad.Read full article >>

LOS ANGELES — Look around the Mets clubhouse these days and you see a lot of smiles. The Mets are respectable, and thatas a start.

Playing hard goes a long way, especially in the National League. And the Mets are having fun making the most of what talent they do have. For a change they are laughing at themselves and not at the way they play.

All you had to do was watch the final out of the July 4 come-from-behind 5-2 win over the dismal Dodgers to understand the Mets are making the most of what they have and donat have.

That is a credit to Terry Collins.

When that out was made, Jose Reyes, who missed his second straight game with a tweaked left hamstring, was the first Mets player out of the dugout to congratulate teammates coming off the field. Reyes, as he always does after a victory, loosened his jersey and starting high-fiving.

Collins is letting the Mets have fun. He is making the most of the talent they possess.

When I asked Collins what is happening with his Mets he smiled and said, aThese guys are so fun. I wasnat here in the past and I know this sounds like Iam talking bad about the guys from before, but these guys are just having fun. They are playing for one another and that makes a difference.aa

Pulling for one another, too, no matter what injury comes their way. No Johan Santana, no David Wright and now Reyes is on the shelf, no problem. Donat expect Reyes to play Tuesday against the Dodgers as Mike Pelfrey goes up against Ted Lilly. If Reyes doesnat play Wednesday or Thursday, he will be shut down through the All-Star Game.

aYou have to have fun,aa Collins added. aWeare in a tough climate.aa

The Mets are always in a tough climate, but they are getting leadership this season from Carlos Beltran.

aYou canat ask for a better makeup. I know heas a quiet guy and some people take that as moodiness,aa Collins explained. aEspecially when you are a star like that but that is his nature. He doesnat have a lot to say, but when he does speak up, people do listen.aa

The Mets are one game over .500 and 6 1/2 games back in the NL Wild Card race. They have a long way to go but they are making it a fun little ride. In past years they have always collapsed on the West Coast. Thatas why this trip is so important from an emotional standpoint as they head into the All-Star break.

The Mets need to take advantage of the Dodgers, who are dead last in the mild NL West with a 37-49 record and ownership problems that make the Metsa woes look like a walk in the park. For now the Mets have put the distractions aside and are having fun.

They are trying to turn a Season of Disaster into a nice little Baseball Summer.

PORT ST. LUCIE — These are dark days for the Madoff Mets and team owners Fred and Jeff Wilpon. David Wright, the public face of the franchise, has reached out to ownership in a show of support.

aIave become very close with the Wilpon family over the years,aa Wright told The Post during an optional workout Monday at the Mets spring training complex. aTheyave done a lot for me. And I feel for them, just having to go through this.

aI called Jeff a few days ago just to let him know that I was thinking about him and if he needed anything from me, Iam there for him,aa Wright said. aBut itas got to be tough. Especially when youare talking about having your family go through this in such a public way. You feel for them. But you understand the situation. Hopefully everything will work itself out in the end.

aFor them being in New York and seeing how things go on, I think they will be able to handle it.a

Irving Picard, the trustee seeking to recover funds for victims of convicted swindler Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme, is seeking $1 billion from the Metsa owners.

Wright was one of 32 Mets, major and minor leaguers, to show up for the workout. Pitchers and catchers report officially next week.

Wright said he does not feel the Madoff situation will impact the players from a preparedness standpoint.

aGetting down here and playing baseball you donat have to listen to every day whatas going on in that situation,aa the third baseman said. aItas almost like once you walk across these lines; itas almost like a sanctuary. Thatas one of the best things for me to get back out on the baseball field. You donat have to think about everything.aa

As for the future and the fact that Jose Reyes will be a free agent after the season, Wright said he is confident that Reyes will have a big year and thatas the best thing that the shortstop can do so that he can remain with the Mets, no matter what happens with the financial situation.

aJoseas healthy and thatas huge,aa Wright said. aI just talked to him and heas excited. I know he is going to help me so much to be a run producer. Heas going to give me plenty of opportunities to drive in runs.aa

Manager Terry Collins, who was observing the workout, echoed Wrightas comments, saying, that the financial situation ais a whole different world from what we are doing right now as a team. The only thing (GM) Sandy (Alderson) said to me was, aGet them ready to play.a And that is what weare doing.

aWeare going to be ready to play.aa

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida researchers are working to speed up their ability to create new tangerine varieties by pinpointing the compounds that make them taste and smell the way they do.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida researchers are working to speed up their ability to create new tangerine varieties by pinpointing the compounds that make them taste and smell the way they do.

1. Ozzie Guillen is the manager of the Marlins for the same reason that Rex Ryan is coach of the Jets.

This is about frightened ownership groups opening new stadiums and not trusting enough in the on-field product. So they got carnival barkers to be the out-front faces of the organizations.

Yes, of course, Guillen and Ryan have certain sports-specific skills. But that does not explain their hirings. Their owners wanted to put on a show, to make their organizations relevant, to get people to buy the PSLs at MetLife Stadium and purchase tickets on the site of the old Orange Bowl. Ryanas Jets were a natural for “Hard Knocks.” And Guillenas Marlins were an obvious choice for Showtimeas Hard Knocks-ian ripoff, “The Franchise.”

Ryan and Guillen speak a similar language that is boisterous, bawdy and boastful. Their pronouncements are more churlish than Churchill. And they are delivered with about the same thought you might put into turning a doorknob to get into a room; which is to say not much at all. Letas go eat a (bleeping) snack indeed.

So while Guillen is doing the public perp walk now, fighting for his job and reputation after he decided he was qualified to dabble in politics without knowing what a landmine it would be to speak positively about Fidel Castro when your new stadium is built in Little Havana, I hold owner Jeffrey Loria and team president David Samson as responsible as the unthinking Guillen.

Because they were thinking. Calculating. They wanted the outrage of Guillen and now cannot distance themselves just because Guillen didnat understand the bounds of what too far is. Loria and Samson a two pretty outrageous fellas on their own a wanted Guillen cursing up a storm, and drawing attention to himself and the team. They wanted the WWE-ificiation in their manageras office as much as Woody Johnson craved the same with Ryan.

They hired a man who they knew was insensitive, thus reinforcing to Guillen that rash statements not only were fine, but encouraged. So Loria/Samson have the credibility of Captain Renault in Casablanca stating, aI’m shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!a And one beat later being handed his winnings from the casino.

Loria/Samson thought they would be scooping up their own winnings by investing in an outrageous man without an editing valve named Ozzie Guillen. They should not be able to walk away as if they didnat understand that there was gambling going on with such a hire.

2. The other team in Florida, the Tampa Bay Rays, are about the most well-run organization in the sport. Their efficiency in player personnel and deploying it to the best use are impressive.

Yet if you talk to a Rays officials they will point out that no matter how efficient they are, they need the inefficiency of others in their division a notably the Yankees and Red Sox a to create an even enough playing field for Tampa to thrive. After all, if a team spending $200 million or $170 million is efficient, it is going to do better than an extremely efficient $60 million payroll squad such as the Rays.

So while they would never say so publicly, the Rays like it quite a bit when their main rivals are beset by infighting or injury or ineptitude. They want to see age or poorly spent money or faulty decision making to infiltrate the Rivalry.

I bring this up because in order for the Mets to have a shockingly good season in 2012 a to make 4-0 matter in the long run a they will need not only their success, but the failure of others. Look, on paper, the Mets probably have the fifth-most talent in the NL East.

But as the Guillen episode reveals there is an implosion possibility in Miami and pretty much everywhere else within the NL East a and we are seeing some signs of it already. As stated in Item 1, the leadership cornerstone of the Marlins a Loria/Samson/Guillen a does not inspire visions of steadiness at the steering wheel. And with Logan Morrison, Hanley Ramirez, Carlos Zambrano and Jose Reyesa hamstring on the roster, there is an extreme volatility with this club that can blow up either way. The Marlins a with the big signings of Reyes, Mark Buehrle and Heath Bell a were trying to cut out a lot of steps along the way to buy their way into a championship conversation and we saw how that went with the Philadelphia Eagles last year.

The Marlins and Nationals are both dealing with the onus of being looked upon as contenders, which will be a new weight for these organizations to handle. The Braves are still dealing with the hangover of their historic September collapse, a few key injuries and the inability to address an offense that was a problem last year. The Phillies, notably with Ryan Howard and Chase Utley, are feeling the sting of age/injury/decline.

I know most Mets fans did not want to see the Metsa portion of the Madoff fiasco settled with the Wilpons still the owners. But with that off the dockets, the Mets are dealing with fewer distractions. Some of ownershipas debts have been paid and there is a sense of moving forward, albeit with many concerns ahead.

So it is up to the Wilpons and really the whole organization to remember these words of Napoleon: Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake. Right now, the rest of the NL East is dealing with a variety of pathologies. It is vital that the Mets let that play out and not get into the stupid statements and actions that led to them being such an inefficiently run organization for so long. Sandy Alderson was brought in as GM to provide stability against the stupidity. It is important that ownership let him do his job without heeding its historic tin ear and finding itself again within self-created stupid Met tricks.

3. One last thought here on the Mets. Maybe too many of their fans are too disenchanted and for too long a period to let a positive start to the season impact their passions and discretionary spending. I get it. What is a few days of 4-0 success against five years of mounting frustration of how matters have gone on and off the field for this team?

I get it. It is your time. It is your money. Do with it what you want?

But it seems to me that fans do tend to like two items: Rooting for the underdog and rooting for homegrown players. And the Mets do check off both of those boxes.

Count me among the group that believed the Metsa magic number had expired before the season had even begun. And I still believe they lack both elite players and organizational depth, and those are two pieces that will undermine a team over the course of a long season.

The Mets have definitely noticed that this is a majority feeling about the club and good for them if they are walking around with a collective chip on their shoulders. It would be the first chip in years that did not send one of them to the DL for a month. Using the underdog mentality as an engine is a fine thing.

And the Mets certainly have a homegrown feel, as well. (Shhh, donat tell anyone, but those are mainly Omar Minayaas players out there). Players such as Ike Davis, Lucas Duda, Jonathon Niese and Ruben Tejada could be at this for a while for the Mets. Who knows, maybe David Wright really will spend his whole career here. Maybe Matt Harvey and Jeurys Familia will provide a from-the-minors spark with this season in progress.

Look, with some games played, it is interesting to see not only the 4-0 of the Mets, but those pathologies besetting the other teams in the division. Maybe a door is opening that was hard to envision even a week ago.

The heavily homegrown underdog Mets have made the most out of their home start. Maybe it is too soon to win back cautious fans who have been sold a lot of empty promises by this organization for a while. But the Mets have a bit of a feel like an undervalued stock, right now. It will be fascinating to see how many of their fans latch onto that stock and a against their offseason judgment a actually begin making their way back to Citi Field.

1. In todayas Post, I wrote this column about being at the domestic season opener last night between Carlos Beltranas Cardinals and Jose Reyesa Marlins, and sensing the stability of St. Louis and the sensationalism of Miami are so different right now from where the Mets are.

In the aftermath of the Cardinalsa 4-1 win, when my friend, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, asked Reyes if he missed the Mets, the shortstop said, aNo chance.a

He said it with a smile and good nature. But also honesty. He is in a place now where he is being paid lavishly — $106 million over the next six years a and the optimism and expectations abound after a few dreary years closing his Mets career.

So is there anything for Mets fans to look forward to in a season that begins today? Yes. There are always surprises and maybe the Mets will surprise. But more realistically what can occur this year is that more building blocks go into place as the Mets try to construct something long-term.

Here is what I feel good about as the season opens for the Mets: I do think Ike Davis is going to be a very good two-way player who challenges for Gold Gloves on defense and hits 30 homers. I think within the NL East it will be interesting to see who turns into the better long-term player among Davis, Atlantaas Freddie Freeman or Miamias Logan Morrison, who probably is best suited to play first rather than left.

In the Morrison ilk is Lucas Duda, who I think is miscast in right field, but not as a major league hitter. I think he has a chance to join Davis in giving the Mets two lefty-swinging 30-homer men. Understand what it would mean if Davis and Duda could actually do that. No team has had multiple lefty hitters reach 30 homers in a season since 2009, when the Phillies had three men do it: Ryan Howard, Raul Ibanez and Chase Utley.

In Daniel Murphy they have another strong lefty hitter who could be a .300/60 extra-base hitter if he could stay healthy and not be such a liability at second base.

I feel Ruben Tejada will make all the plays at short and get on base at a pretty good clip; and might even muscle up for 30 doubles. Jonathon Niese and Dillon Gee could be mid-rotation solutions. And by August, the Mets could be working some or all of Jeurys Familia, Matt Harvey and Jenrry Mejia onto their pitching staff (for those wondering, Zack Wheeler is beginning at Double-A and, thus, less likely to make it all the way to Flushing this year).

That is nine homegrown products who all, interestingly, were brought to the Mets during Omar Minayaas administration.

If all of this were to actually happen then even if the Mets meet the low expectations and finish last in the NL East, this would not be a lost season. It would be a season of growth toward what their suffering fans could hope is a better tomorrow.

2. I watched Miamias Giancarlo Stanton take batting practice twice in the last few days at Marlins Park and what stands out for me is not just how far he hits the ball, but how high.

For example, if you watch Alex Rodriguez take batting practice, he hits what you would more describe as missiles than moon shots. With Stanton, there is a majesty to these drives watching them arc seemingly as high as they go far. In this way, they remind me of watching Mark McGwire take batting practice during his historic homer run in 1998. Of course, that run is tainted now. But whatever I think of how McGwire amassed his power, I cannot erase from my mind being part of large, awed groups who would watch McGwireas BP sessions.

What stood out in last nightas actual game, however, was that Stanton hit two balls to center that off the bat looked as if they would be homers and died on or near the warning track. It reminded me of watching David Wright in the first year of Citi Field and seeing drives that, to him, felt like homers in his hands and to his muscle memory when struck, fall short. The Mets believe he altered his swing to try to compensate to generate the power to get the ball over the fence and ended up hurting his approach, leading to more strikeouts and less effectiveness.

Reyes, in fact, likened how Marlins Park was asimilar to Citi Field, big.a He also added, aThis is nicer. It is beautiful.a

However, when I asked him about Stantonas non-homers last night, Reyes said, aHe is going to hit his homers. There is nothing to worry about.a

That is likely true. Stanton is so big and strong that probably no stadium can contain him and we have not seen fully how weather conditions will impact Marlin Park and what the vagaries will be of when the retractable roof is opened or closed.

However, owners of teams have to be careful that they are not building their stadiums just to fit their fantasies of, say, Ebbets Field or a piece of modern art and actually a you know a enhance their teams and players. You do not want to build a stadium that you plan on being around for generations for specific players on a current team. But you do want to remember that it is being built for players to perform within, including the current ones. And not just for the ownersa egos.

3. In order to accommodate Reyes at shortstop, the Marlins had to move Hanley Ramirez to third. All indications were Ramirez did not initially like that plan, but slowly moved to acceptance and then to embracing the challenge.

But as the season opener displayed, there will be growing pains. Carlos Beltran hit a squibber in the short-third hole in the second inning. Ramirez took a few steps and then halted, looking toward Reyes as if this were the shortstopas ball. But Reyes also had pulled up. There was no chance Reyes was going to play the ball that deeply on a relatively slow-moving grounder and make a play against even this slower version of Beltran. Thus, it was incumbent on Ramirez that he make every effort to reach the ball.

Rafael Furcal led off the fifth inning by pushing a bunt toward third and beating Ramirezas throw. In that situation, with a leadoff man up who can run and bunt, Ramirez has to be cheating in a little more and, generally, be way more alert for the bunt.

And Ramirez is not alone in trying to adapt. Detroitas Miguel Cabrera, after a four-year hiatus, is moving back to third from first and the Angelsa Mark Trumbo is attempting the same cross-diamond transition. They are accommodating the only free-agent position players paid more in the offseason than Reyes a Prince Fielder with the Tigers and Albert Pujols with the Angels.

The Cabrera case is particularly tricky. One element that has made him so valuable is his ability to get on the field. He has played at least 157 games in each of the last eight seasons. But in spring training, he fractured a bone near his eye off of a bad hop. He has made it back for Opening Day. But what other physical landmines are out there for him, including just the sheer exhaustion of playing a more demanding position? Anything that detracts from his bat would negate some of the bonus of having Fielder. Also, Ramirez is a better athlete than Cabrera, so you wonder if Ramirez will frustrate himself and his pitching staff by what he cannot do at the position. In fact, you wonder if either man grows so frustrated and/or embarrassed that he no longer wants to accept playing the hot corner.

It does give a greater appreciation of A-Rod, who instantly embraced the shift to third base in 2004, knowing he could not be traded where he wanted, to the Yankees, without accepting that Derek Jeter was not coming off of shortstop. Rodriguez endures a lot of criticism. But his work ethic is generally admired by even his detractors. And Rodriguez worked hard to become a good third baseman and still works hard at the craft.

1. Yankees GM Brian Cashman has tended to become a fan of an NFL team based on the city in which he has lived. Growing up in Kentucky, he was a fan of the nearby Cincinnati Bengals. When he went to college in Washington, he became a Redskins fan. In his early days working for the Yankees in Tampa, Cashman actually used to wear a Buccaneers jersey to every home game. When he moved up to New York as part of his Yankees employment, he became a Giants fan. His backing of the Giants only strengthened when Tom Coughlin became coach because Coughlinas son, Tim, and Cashman had been roommates and friends in New York.

But when it comes to college basketball, Cashmanas blue blood runs deep. He has always been a Kentucky Wildcats fan and has become friendly over the years with their coach, John Calipari. Also, Cashman is quite aware of a bit of quirky history: Kentucky has won the NCAA tournament six times (1949, 1951, 1958, 1978, 1996 and 1998) and the Yankees have gone on to win the World Series in each of those years. So before this tournament began, Cashman sent a text to Calipari, who is a Yankees fan. Cashman reiterated the history to Calipari in pointing out why his rooting interest will be so strong. Calipari texted back, athen I better win.a

Kentucky plays Kansas tonight for the championship.

2. In yesterdayas Post, I wrote this column about the art of the steal looking as if it is coming back in the majors.

I hope you will read it to see why so many folks in the game think we are returning to a time of rising stolen base totals. But if it is then the Metsa loss of Jose Reyes to free agency and Angel Pagan in a trade to the Giants could be problematic.

Reyes, the Metsa all-time steal leader, had 39 steals last year and Pagan 32 and that represented more than half of the 130 the team generated. The next-highest total was the 13 of David Wright. Perhaps if Wright can stay healthy he could become a twentysomething steal man again. Andres Torres, who was obtained for Pagan, stole 19 last year and 26 the season before. The stolen base is not a significant part of the game of Reyes replacement, Ruben Tejada.

As for the Yankees, they have Brett Gardner and Curtis Granderson as part of their regular lineup. They already are looking for ways to inject Eduardo Nunezas live body into the lineup to either rest Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez or a at times even a play some outfield. His fearlessness in stealing bases could be another reason to try to play him, especially if thievery is indeed a trend to watch in 2012.

3. What would be a bigger recent joke job: The Jets missing the playoffs or if the Knicks fail to even qualify?

The Jets, of course, were talking Super Bowl and the Knicks, for some reason, were being discussed as in contention for the NBA championship at least during three distinct points this season, beginning with the addition of Tyson Chandler, the emergence of Jeremy Lin and the boost experienced when Mike Woodson replaced Mike DaAntoni.

Now, of course, the Knicks are in an extreme struggle to simply make the playoffs and the reason we are told is because they may not be able to overcome injuries, notably to Jeremy Lin and Amar’e Stoudemire. I donat know if there is any crying in basketball or baseball. I do know there should be no alibis.

For the record, the Bulls are 14-6 without Derrick Rose, the reigning MVP and far and away Chicagoas most important component in the team sport that depends on the best players more than any other. Credit coach Tim Thibodeau for creating a culture of defense all the time and excuses never.

I bring this up because baseball season is about to begin and already we see how injuries are going to rip into rosters. But it should be noted that winning teams figure out how to successfully navigate the season. The Cardinals suffered arguably the most devastating injury of any team in 2011 when they lost their ace, Adam Wainwright, for the season in spring training. Yet they went on to win the World Series.

The Yankees in the past few days had to shut down Michael Pineda with a shoulder injury. Maybe he will pitch soon, maybe he wonat. Perhaps he will be effective, perhaps he wonat. The Yankees were hoping he would grow into a No. 2 starter. But if that is going to happen it is going to happen with the season already in progress.

The Yankees were really good last year at dealing with problems. It began when Cliff Lee spurned them in free agency and Andy Pettitte went on what we now know was a sabbatical, not a retirement. Then A.J. Burnett continued to pitch like A.J. Burnett and a more problematic a Phil Hughes pitched like A.J. Burnett. But they were a tough-minded team with a good winning culture and they worked their way through the difficulties. Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia were much better than anticipated, and Ivan Nova emerged as a trustworthy rotation piece. It helped them win 97 games and the toughest division in the majors.

Injuries are going to strike all 30 teams this year. No one gets out of the season without being touched by the DL. You are going to read plenty about adevastating injuriesa and maybe there will be. But is there anything more devastating than losing the reigning MVP for nearly a third of an abbreviated season or losing your ace for a whole campaign?

Over the next six months, elite teams will emerge. Part of that will be about who stays the healthiest. But part of it will be about which teams do not fracture a in spirit, confidence and cohesion a when bodies begin to break down.

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