With Reynolds, you get homers, but also strikeouts

By Steve Melewski

Orioles

December 06, 2010, 7:27am

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So it appears that Mark Reynolds is on his way to Baltimore. He is far from the perfect player, like most of them, but he is a slugger the team has been seeking. Over four years with Arizona, his 162-game averages are .242-35-100 and an OPS of .817. For more of Reynolds' stats, click here. Over the last three years, he has hit 28, 44 and 32 homers. But he has also struck out 204, 223 and 211 times. I have said before, I'll take the 35-homer type player and deal with the strikeouts. That is a whopping amount, of course, and some joke that Reynolds could strike out 300 times in the AL East. Let's hope that just turns out to be an exaggeration. We know he hits homers and we know he strikes out. His defense? Well, it depends on the person you ask. I have asked a few over the last few days to rate his defense and have gotten answers from "poor" to "he's pretty solid." A major splash this is not, but the O's did do something, and they now have more pop in their lineup. Maybe it's a start.