NASHVILLE – This is why you will love Jose Reyes. He is not Rey Ordonez.

For the first time in a long time, the Mets have a player you can watch grow into a star. They have their own Derek Jeter. And he’s only 19.

Give him time to learn. Sit back and enjoy the great plays -and even the mistakes – he makes along the way. There will be some speed bumps in the journey for the young shortstop, but once he makes the jump from AAA to Shea, you will not be disappointed.

At some point this season, Reyes, who has never played higher than AA ball, will be given the job now that Ordonez has been banished to Tampa Bay. This is what you will see.

“He can fly, I’ve never seen anyone like him,” says one observer who watched Reyes this year in the Florida State League. Another scout points out that he’s only seen one player run better out of the box left-handed, and that player’s name is Ichiro.

Reyes has been clocked at 3.57 vapor trailing to first. That is phenomenal.

“He has the chance to be a very exciting player, both offensively and defensively,” GM Steve Phillips told me last night, looking as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders, the weight of Ordonez’ selfish and – yes, fans – stupid style of play. “And he’s going to fill out and be able to drive the ball as well.

“He’s only been switch-hitting for three seasons and that has come leaps and bounds for him; I think he’s just going to keep getting better and better,” Phillips added. “Everybody I’ve talked to from other people in baseball to agents who have been over to see him play really rave about what type of talents he has. And he’s a good kid, kind of unassuming and he has a good smile.”

And now Ordonez won’t be around to spoil Reyes’ development. He can’t make The New Kid sour. There is no way the Mets could have brought Reyes up to learn the position from Ordonez. What he would have learned was to be self-centered, uncaring and a hot dog. And to think the fans are stupid.

Mark Pevey, who manages Dunedin in the Florida State League, was asked about Reyes at the end of the season and told Baseball America, “He’ll take Rey’s place next year. This kid can run rings around Ordonez.”

Reyes was named the No. 2 prospect in the Florida State League last year while batting .288 for St. Lucie with 31 stolen bases in 288 at-bats. He then was promoted to Double-A Binghamton, where he hit .287 with 27 stolen bases in 275 at-bats and was named that league’s No. 1 prospect. He also was tabbed the Florida State League’s Most Exciting Player.

Oh, yes, in the two leagues he scorched 19 triples. You can’t teach speed. He will give the Mets much needed athleticism.

The New Kid still strikes out too much, but he’s too electric in an Alfonso Soriano kind of way not to push to the next level. You can’t wait for stardom; you have to nudge it along. The World Champion Angels once again showed the baseball world that winning teams need a blend of youth and veterans. That is another reason why the Mets had to make this move.

The Mets are entering a new era, where playing the game the right way matters. It’s the perfect time for change, the perfect time to watch Jose Reyes grow into a star.