At the beginning of the pre-season training, Franmil Reyes I heard that one of the assistants of the Indian club from Cleveland commented, while cleaning the baseballs, that they will not fly as much this year.
Then Reyes laughed and showed his big smile, as big as his swing.
On Wednesday, in a pre-season game, Reyes found a pitch from Taylor Widener of the Arizona Diamondbacks and sent the ball traveling through thin desert air to hit a slate behind Goodyear Park’s center field.
It was one of those hits that takes the ball out of any park that players talk about for days.
“It was a very good swing,” said Terry Francona, the Indian manager. “I do not care what time of year it is. It was a good swing. “
Before running to the first, Reyes took a short break to appreciate the trajectory of the ball. Satisfied, he left the bat and began his trot to the home plate.
“Finally,” Reyes said. “I hit the picture, but not the one in Cleveland.”
This task is pending.
The kind Reyes hopes to unload clubs that force the use of the measuring tape this season with the Indians, who need another source of power in the middle of their battle order, after refusing to renew the agreement of Dominican Carlos Santana and after they gave up in exchange for Puerto Rican shortstop Francisco Lindor, two of his most productive sluggers.
Reyes came to Cleveland in 2019 from the San Diego Padres as part of a three-club deal that sent Trevor Bauer to the Cincinnati Reds. It needs more coherence this year, after a promising 2020, before its numbers plummet.
Exactly one year ago, the 25-year-old sprayed the ball in the pre-season. He seemed headed for a big campaign before the pandemic, which paralyzed baseball for three months.
Reyes returned to the Dominican Republic, where he had virtually no opportunity to practice seriously.
When the campaign could be inaugurated in the summer, Reyes seemed lost. In August he hit .313 with seven homers and 22 RBI. He then opened September by going 5-for-5 and hitting eight straight bats.
“I honestly say every year that I will accept whatever God wants,” Reyes said. “It simply came to our notice then. If I could control where the ball would go, I’d probably have an average of 1,000, right? I can control that I am ready for each round and I try to hit the ball well every time. “