The Colorado Rockies are your 2017 World Series Champions! Too soon? Definitely. But, we can hope for the best, and the Rockies are close to being the best team in baseball currently. Tied for second-most in the league with 14 wins, the club is red-hot. First baseman Mark Reynolds has been a key contributor, and he joined Les Shapiro of Afternoon Drive on Mile High Sports Radio to discuss his recent success.
Reynolds’ team-high .333 batting average, 26 hits and 7 home runs have been vital to the Rockies’ fast start, and his 20 RBIs are second to only Charlie Blackmon. He’s playing some of the best baseball of his career and credits his tenure in the league and a relaxed approach to the game as his main reasons.
“Like a fine wine, right?” said Reynolds. “I don’t know, just maturing, getting older, getting perspective, you know, having children and realizing what’s really important in life and you know, this is a game and I’m trying to have fun.”
Hitting isn’t the only way in which Reynolds has made an early impact either. His play at first base has been first-rate, even though he’s spent majority of his career at third base.
“I take pride in digging throws out of the dirt and helping our infielders and giving them confidence that they can make the tough play and make an iffy throw and I can help them out and not be afraid to make errors,” said Reynolds.
Despite his recent success, Reynolds has had a reputation for striking out quite a bit. He has the most strikeouts in one season in MLB history with 223, and can be found in the top-10 two more times after that. Reynolds doesn’t look back on it too much, and realizes, unlike much of the public, he’s going up against the best of the best each night.
“I’ve heard so much about strikeouts for so many years now, I’m almost numb to it.” said Reynolds. “Obviously you don’t want to strike out, but it’s not embarrassing. You’re in the big leagues.”
Even though he’s been arguably the Rockies’ most valuable player as of late, his playing time might get cut in the near future. Rockies’ offseason signee Ian Desmond will be returning to the lineup in the coming weeks, and the $70 million man will likely play first base or in the outfield. Although he may see a shortage in time, Reynolds’ relaxed, stress-free attitude towards his recent play applied the same to this situation.
“It’s a good thing that he’s coming back. He makes our team better. Whether its at the expense of my playing time or anyone else’s, it is what it is,” said Reynolds.
If Reynolds can keep the bat going and making tough plays at first, Rockies’ manager Bud Black may have no choice but to keep him on the field. While so many athletes overlook and complicate things, Reynolds tries to keep it simple.
“I just try to see the ball, hit the ball and put the barrel on it.”
Listen to the full interview with Mark Reynolds, including his thoughts on how his approach to batting has changed, in the podcast below.
Sorry – this audio content is no longer available.
Catch Afternoon Drive with Goodman and Shapiro every weekday from 4p-6p on Mile High Sports AM 1340 | FM 104.7 or stream live any time for the best local coverage of Colorado sports from Denver’s biggest sports talk lineup.
