Pirates' Bryan Reynolds focused only on this season, with perhaps a quick glance toward the All-Star Game

Bryan Reynolds was polite with his answer, but adamant in his insistence.

“I don’t want to talk about last year anymore,” he said.

Actually, he said it twice, making his point as forcefully as any hit he has launched off the barrel of his bat this season.

Translation: Please leave me alone and let me hit .300.

After all, it’s what he does best. This year, the Pittsburgh Pirates’ center fielder may ride his perpetually productive bat all the way to Coors Field in Denver, Colo., for the All-Star Game on July 13. At worst, he’s in the conversation to get there as a reserve.

“He shows up every night and does something special,” said Pirates second baseman Adam Frazier, a potential All-Star himself. “That’s the definition of an All-Star, I guess.”

The reference to last season came up Thursday night after Reynolds had three hits, including a three-run homer, in the Pirates’ 8-2 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals.

Reynolds has hit .302 or better in eight leagues in all but two seasons since 2014, his first year in the SEC at Vanderbilt.

The exceptions:

• Surprise! He hit .188 in 18 games in the Arizona Fall League in 2018, playing for a team called the Surprise (that’s a town in Arizona) Saguaros (another name for cacti).

That was after he hit .302 that summer for Double-A Altoona in his first season after the Pirates acquired him and Kyle Crick from the San Francisco Giants for Andrew McCutchen.

• In a 2020 season shortened to 60 games by the pandemic, Reynolds hit .189.

This season, with normalcy restored, he’s hitting .313, second to Frazier’s .330 on the Pirates. His on-base percentage is .403, third in the National League.

Plus, he leads the team with 13 home runs — six more than Gregory Polanco, the runner-up at the moment. And Reynolds’ 42 RBIs are far and away tops on the Pirates. Jacob Stallings is next with 29.

Manager Derek Shelton, a former hitting coach, understands what happened to Reynolds last season.

“I think last year in the 60-game season, he got off to a slow start,” Shelton said. “He really pressed and got away from his true swing. He was trying to search for hits.

“This year, he came into spring training and he stayed consistent throughout. He’s just trying to hit the ball hard. I think we’re seeing the benefits of that.”

To Reynolds, hitting a baseball speeding toward home plate at more than 90 mph, is a matter of timing more than launch angle, a buzz phrase among hitters these days.

“He’s stayed simple,” Shelton said. “He’s worried about hitting the ball hard, making sure he’s in a good position to hit on time.

“If you want to call that old school, I think every hitter has to do that and guys get caught up in doing other things.”

Reynolds’ success may be as simple as his quick hands, arm strength and where he holds the bat while waiting for the pitch.

“I think it just comes back to my timing and just getting my barrel ready to fire,” Reynolds said, “not having it wrap so far around my head. And, really, I think that’s it. That will allow my barrel to get to the ball more consistently.”

Reynolds has a quiet personality that suggests he’s focused on almost nothing but baseball.

When the topic of earning a spot on the National League All-Star team was mentioned, he tried not to sound too eager.

“I think everybody, when they were growing up, dreamed of that, so it would be awesome,” he said. “It’s out of my control, so if I am, I am. If I’m not, I’m not. But it would be cool, for sure.”

Reynolds is not among the top nine vote getters in Phase 1 of fan balloting for National League outfielders. Yet, he has more RBIs and a better batting average than seven of the nine and more home runs than five.

“I don’t think there’s anything else to prove,” Shelton said.

The final Phase 1 results will be announced at noon Sunday. Phase 2 voting will last four days, concluding at 2 p.m. Thursday. The starting teams will be announced at 9 p.m. Thursday on ESPN.