Getting to know Jack Reinheimer

Last Monday, the Baltimore Orioles claimed Jack Reinheimer off waivers from the Texas Rangers. I covered the move shortly after it happened, filling in the details to provide a background on the 26-year-old infielder from North Carolina. The Orioles have now claimed four different players off waivers since December 10.

It shouldn’t have been expected that the Orioles would make a huge splash in free agency during the offseason. Needing a veteran catcher, a starter, an outfielder and a utility infielder, they weren’t going to be bidding for Dallas Keuchel or Manny Machado. The moves made so far though, add much needed depth in the organization and could turn into valuable pieces in the club’s rebuilding phase.

Reinheimer, (pronounced RINE-heim-urr), could contribute in many ways to the organization. Projected to begin the year at Triple-A Norfolk, he could actually see some action at the major league level. Reinheimer’s played each infield position except first base. His career 4.63 range factor per nine in 504 games at shortstop in the minors may actually supplement Rule-5 picks Richie Martin or Drew Jackson. That’s a conversation for a later date.

This will be Reinheimer’s seventh season in professional baseball. He’s appeared in 650 minor league games and has played in 23 in the majors. I had the opportunity to speak with Jack last Thursday about a few different topics, including what it’s been like to play professional baseball for a living.

About the experience, Jack told me, “it’s humbling.” He said, “It’s something that I always dreamed of and worked for when I was younger.” His hard work growing up and all through high school and college translated to him being drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 5th round of the 2013 Amateur Draft. He was previously drafted out of high school by the Atlanta Braves, but didn’t sign.

Instead, he chose to go to college and attended Eastern Carolina University. You may recognize that school because current Orioles relief pitcher Mike Wright Jr., went to the same school. He had the chance to play alongside Wright at ECU and is looking forward to reuniting with his old teammate.

And speaking of old teammates, in 2014, he actually played with another current Oriole reliever, Paul Fry. They played together with the Single-A Clinton LumberKings and Reinheimer told me that he’s, “excited to see him and catch up.” He continued, “It’s been a while and we even messaged back-and-forth the other day. It’s always great being reunited with old teammates.”

Reinheimer’s had ties to the organization even before being claimed on Monday. He played with former Orioles Adam Loewen, Brian Matusz and Christian Walker in 2016 with the Reno Aces and last season with the Las Vegas 51s, he played with Vance Worley.

The Aces are the Arizona Diamondbacks Triple-A team and the 51s are the Triple-A team for the New York Mets. Since July, Reinheimer has been part of four different organizations and most recently, three since November. After he was claimed off waivers by the Mets, the Chicago Cubs claimed him on November 2. He was then again placed on waivers and claimed by the Texas Rangers on November 20. Hopefully for him, this is his last stop for a while, but I asked Jack, as a professional, how does he handle bouncing around from organization to organization?

“It’s tough at times,” he said. “There’s a lot of repeat conversations with new people. A lot of getting to know people and figuring out the logistics of where you’ll be playing and living. Right now, I’m dealing with having to move my stuff from Arizona to Florida for spring training so this time was difficult on that end of things. But it’s always nice knowing a team likes you enough to claim you, and I’m excited for this opportunity and to get down to Florida and get to work.”

And the Orioles did like what they saw. Not only is Reinheimer versatile on the infield, but he’s been a guy that can get on base and get in a pitcher’s head. Over his six seasons in the minors, Reinheimer’s produced a 73% stolen base rate (123-of-168) and has compiled a .343 on-base percentage. I asked Jack if when he reached base, if he was already thinking about swiping second.

“I like to stay aggressive on the bases so most of the time I’m looking for ways to take a base, yes. I think staying aggressive keeps my instincts sharp and can in turn, clean up some possible miscues.”

Being aggressive on the base paths is what will set this group – and any future groups – of Orioles apart from the rest. The all-or-nothing days of this franchise are behind them. It’s not only an exciting time to be a fan of the team, but it’s exciting for the players to be a part of it. There’s a ton of young talent within the organization and now Reinheimer is added to the mix. I asked him his thoughts on being here and what he hoped to contribute to the organization.

“I’m excited to be in the mix of guys we have,” he told me. “[There’s] a lot of guys competing and pushing each other and also a good group of veteran guys that have been successful at the highest level for years. I’m just excited to watch those guys go about their business and just pick their brains. I’m looking forward to learning and growing as a player and hopefully I can provide something that may click for someone else and help them too.”