Reyes emerges from seclusion

Apparently whatever mobsters were out to get Jose Reyes have been taken care of, as Jim Duquette once again feels comfortable speaking his name in public. In addition to that bit of good news, Duquette says of the young second baseman's hamstring injury, "We're optimistic. We feel like he's turned the corner." And it seems this optimism is more concrete than all previous optimism about Reyes' healing, as they've actually pinned down a possible date for his return, namely the April 23-25 series agains the Cubs. The offense has held up relatively well without Reyes so far, but getting him back will be a huge boost to the quality and consistency of the Mets' run-scoring apparatus, provided he's completely healthy. And it'll force Art Howe to stick someone who can actually hit in the second slot in the lineup, which is always nice.  ¶ joe | 3:36 PM |