Jose Reyes Won't Discuss Extension During Season
Written by Bob Whalon, Tuesday June 21 2011
New York Mets shortstop Jose Reyes has informed the team that he will not discuss a contract extension during the season.
This should not come as a surprise to anyone, since Reyes is due to become a free agent at the end of the season and he intends to test the free agent waters.
"Right now I don't want any distractions," Reyes said. "I just want to continue to play. We're going to have plenty of time in the offseason to make this happen."
With the financial difficulties of the Mets due to the Bernie Madoff scandal, the team does not have the resources to pay Reyes what he will command on the open market. There are estimates that the team could lose up to $70 million this season. Plus there is the little business of owner Fred Wilpon criticizing Reyes: "He thinks he's going to get Carl Crawford money. He's had everything wrong with him. He won't get it." As such, this move is nothing more than posturing on both sides.
Reyes and his agent have no intention of signing a contract extension with the Mets before they can create a bidding war in free agency. And Mets general manager Sandy Alderson is doing nothing more than trying to create some positive public relations buzz for his maligned franchise.
Alderson said that he went public with this information to try to prevent any continued debate about Reyes' pending free agency. He also claims that the team's record would have no bearing on whether or not Reyes is traded before the trade deadline.
"All I wanted to suggest was if we were playing lousy, it doesn't mean Jose is gone," Alderson said. "That's basically the point I'm trying to make. If we are playing lousy, are we a seller? Generally speaking, maybe, probably."
The assumption around major league baseball and the among the fans is that the Mets will trade Reyes along with other players, such as Carlos Beltran and Francisco Rodriguez, in order to reduce payroll and begin to rebuild the franchise with moderately-priced younger players.
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