Ruben Tejada Could Be Very Useful

   

Courtesy of Bleacher Report

     Just like the majority of Met fans, I firmly believe that if Ruben Tejada ever becomes our starting shortstop again, we could be in serious trouble. However, that isn't to say that he could be incredibly valuable in his own right.
     Recently, Fangraphs posted an article on how Maicer Izturis could actually make a big difference to the Blue Jays this season. This is because since the Jays have no Second base or shortstop depth (which is key, since Jose Reyes we know has trouble staying healthy), he is going to be counted on to fill in for both positions. Essentially, that got me thinking about Tejada doing the same thing.
     It's true that Tejada is not an acceptable option to start at shortstop if we want to contend, but in all honesty, he wasn't that terrible. Yes he only hit .237 last season, his power stinks and the projections don't think he'll do much better. However, despite his wRC+ of 89 last season being below average, it isn't that terrible compared to Didi Gregorius and his 76 wRC+. Tejada had a far better season than the same player who's supposed to be the Yankees starting shortstop this year. I think that because we're New Yorkers and one bad season turns us off most of the time, we think Tejada is the same player as his horrid 2013. However, he has been a serviceable player offensively every other year.
     We've seen that Tejada is capable of holding down the shortstop position, and has also logged in time at Second base. In fact, Tejada has actually proven to be a slightly above average defender up the middle. Last season, he posted a UZR of 3 and had 3 defensive runs saved at short. Meanwhile over at Second base, he had a UZR/150 innings of 3.7 in 2011.
     The more I think about it, the more I think a case can be made for Tejada being as valuable as the aforementioned Gregorius. We know that Didi Gregorius has a reputation for being a stellar defensive infielder and he passes the eye test. Despite this, his defensive prowess seems like it hasn't transferred to the Major Leagues yet.
     Like I mentioned before though, his offense was horrendous even in a favorable home ballpark like Chase Field, and being under a low pressure environment in Arizona. To be honest, he shouldn't fare that much better with the Yankees (we know first hand how much of a high pressure environment New York is). It seems like even if Gregorius' defense transfers to the Majors, he may end up being a similar to Brendan Ryan. Also, Tejada is only four months older than Gregorius. Yes, Tejada has more service time, but he's only owed $1.8 million, and is under team control until 2018.
     I think that Ruben Tejada could prove to be very useful to the Mets, as he can fill in many different roles for the team. As I stated before, he may not be very rangy, but he can certainly hold his own defending up the middle. This could be very important if the team needs to give Dan Murphy a day off, or if Wilmer Flores comes down with an injury. In this case, the team wouldn't be losing a step (and could actually get better) defensively.
     Tejada has also proven that he can swing a decent enough bat that he can be an effective bench player, as evidenced by when you take out that one bad season in 2013, he has a career .335 OBP, 85 OPS+ and a wRC+ of 86. Essentially, if the team is in good shape, Tejada won't be our starting shortstop anytime soon. It seems like Jose Reyes among others feel the same way. However, Tejada can prove to be very helpful to the team as a young, cheap player in a versatile bench role.