29
2011
Jose Reyes Loves New York, Says It’s Perfect Town For Him
An article by Craig Lerner
Steve Serby of the NY Post intreviews Jose Reyes for his Serby’s Sunday series. Here are just a few of the questions asked, but check out the full three page interview here.
Q: Carl Crawford signed a seven-year, $142 million deal with the Red Sox. Does it have to be seven years for you? Could it be less?
A: Right now I don’t think about that. I’m not a free agent yet (laughs). It’s gonna be after this year, so I don’t put that kind of thought in my mind. I’m just gonna continue to put up good numbers and help this team to win a lot of ballgames.
Q: Why do you love playing in New York so much?
A: I feel like I’m playing home here, because you’re going to have fans from everywhere. A lot of Dominican people live here around New York. It’s made me comfortable. I love the fans here because they’re going to be in the stadium with a lot of energy.
Q: Do you think the best of Jose Reyes is yet to come?
A: I think I’m still getting better. The injuries slowed me down a little bit, but now I’m feeling good. I feel 100 percent. I think I’m still getting better because I’m still 27 years old.
Q: Mets fans call the radio stations and talk about not wanting you to leave.
A: They just want me here, because they know I play the game the right way, and I try to give you everything that I have to this team, and to put a good show on the field. I’m the guy who plays hard every single day so I think the fans like that. When you give 100 percent every day, everybody’s going to like that. They see me healthy now. . . . This year they see the real Jose Reyes.
Q: Does your wife (Katherine) want you to stay a Met?
A: Yeah, she don’t want me to go nowhere. We live here for a long time.
Q: Do you think Jose Reyes and New York are a perfect marriage?
A: (Laughs) Probably yes.
Q: Because?
A: Everybody wants to be here in New York, no doubt. This is a perfect town for me right now. But I don’t know if it’s going to be like that in the future. For now, yes.
Q: A message from you to all the Mets fans who want you to stay here.
A; (Laughs). That I don’t have that decision, but I love to stay here. I continue to contribute to this team and to put on a good show for the fans.
About the Author: Craig Lerner
I'm a data analyst and researcher for a leading news agency who loves life and is hooked on the Mets. I love following the Amateur Draft and have a particular fondness for the Mets Minor Leagues who I follow each day. Give me a cold beer, a summer day, and a Mets game, and I'm good to go.
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NL East Standings
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Braves | 42 | 28 | .600 | - |
| Nationals | 34 | 35 | .493 | 7.5 |
| Phillies | 34 | 37 | .479 | 8.5 |
| Mets | 25 | 40 | .385 | 14.5 |
| Marlins | 22 | 47 | .319 | 19.5 |
Last updated: 06/18/2013
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I’ve said it all along that he is Derek Jeter’s replacement at shortstop.
Yup, he doesn’t have to leave New York to leave the Mets. Although the Mets certainly could point out that the Yanks would make him cut his hair. Hair or rings? You decide Mr. Reyes.
Johnny Damon spiffied up real nice when George showed him the money.
still prefer johnny w/whiskers! like now! i don’t think reyes is in danger of getting a pinstripe make over. yanks would have to retire posada and put jeter at dh. that would be an uproar in yankeeland i don’t think they are ready to deal with
Jose’ is pretty skilled at saying the right things. That might be because those are his genuine feelings. He may very well migrate to the Bronx and, if so, I might wind up watching YES a lot more and SNY a lot less. There could be other Mets fans thinking the same thing and that is something for dopey Fred and Jeff to ponder. Mets, you will be much better off finding a way to retain Jose’ here through his eventual retirement.
Mask, my friend, even I, a truest Reyes’ fan, acknowledge his best skillset, legs, energy, dynamics are not conducive to growing old gracefully so I would tend to believe the correct course of action here is as stipulated by Madden in today’s “Daily News” a best offer scenerio from NYM. (5y?) nO lIFETIME OFFERS!
http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/2011/05/30/2011-05-30_make_him_an_offer_or_trade_him__fast.html
I would have to believe an offer making Jose the highest paid SS in MLB(UNTIL ’15) of 5Y/$90M shuld be sufficient, my sweetner would be mutual protection after 3Y with a “MUTUAL OPT OUT” clause to allow Reyes to to re-enter the market with more distance fronm his latest injury marred Seasons & without major F/A SS competition as this yr J-Roll’s option expires splitting the market between Reyes & Rollins for Premiere ALLSTAR quality SS as well as allowing Jose an exit should the team continue it’s mediocritry causing cost-cutting ways; the NYM get an exit should Reyes’ health become the substantial issue it was in ’09,’10. @ 18M per for 5 Seasons built the Wilpon way of incentives(#games played,OBP,indiv awards aka MVP, ASG,etc.) & deferrment combinations over a 15M per base guarantee the delta of only a 4M increase over current 11M level is virtually negligible. Yet it should be pointed out that if he maximized his earnmings potential those first 3 guaranteed Seasons, Jose will be the highest paid SS in MLB as Tulo’s higher numbers don’t kick in until ’15. I’ve done a quick review of the current 30 SS & found 7 being paid ther MLB minimum while of the remaining 23, Jose’s current 11M seats him among the top 3 paid SS currently. as for those 3 guaranteed @ 15M incentivized to a potential 18M I propose they offer against the more identifiable names @ SS the highest $ possibly earned from ’12-’14 are:
JETER: 17M
TULOW: 5.5M increases to 20M per ’15-’19
HANLEY: 11M now increases to 16M in ’14
J-ROLL: current 8.5M option expiress this Season
FURCAL: 12M
Those are the comparatives according to “COT’S”
I believe a 5Y/90M, 75 guaranteed with a 3Y mutual opt out is highly competitive & if turned down, the best trade pkg may be our best & only option regrettably.
NB clarification on Tulow’s deal as:
10 years/$157.75M (2011-20), plus 2021 club option
signed extension with Colorado 11/30/10, replacing final 3 years and option in previous contract
11:$5.5M, 12:$8.25M, 13:$10M, 14:$16M, 15-19:$20M annually, 20:$14M, 21:$15M club option ($4M buyout)
salaries for 2020 and 2021 may increase by $6M annually based on MVP votes, Gold Gloves, Silver Sluggers or All-Star selections
$2M assignment bonus if traded
may be traded only once during contract
62, Nice analysis and hopefully it works. I was thinking $80M over 4 yrs might do it, but your proposal is better especially with the 3 yr opt-out provision.
By the way, isn’t it amazing that Tulo’s contract actually addresses 2021. Wouldn’t the world have come to an end prior to that?
So, if (God Forbid) the Yankees get Reyes you will then become a Yankees fan? Am I reading that right?
Mets fans myself included wont have a problem with trading K rod and Beltran mid yr but if Reyes gets traded it will cause a fan uproar. Thats a ton of salary for a Ny team to unload. If Reyes would take 17 mil a yr for 5 yrs they have to sign him or it will look very bleak for the franchise. To me thats fair for both parties.
The Mets aren’t going to let him go.
And how do you think they force him to stay???
One point that he seems to forget, if he REALLY wants to stay wi the Mets, he can sign for less money than he would get elsewhere. I am sure if he went in and said 5 years at 10 Million a year, the Mets would sign him upright then and there.
Sorry Luis, NY is very nice but it’s not worth giving up 10 Mil per year for…
With the extra 20 Mil per year he could buy his own Jet and STILL have enough left over to live in NY in the offseason if he loves it so much!
The most your going to get discount is less than 5 Mil! Truth is probably around 1-2 Mil so you will get him for Werth Money not Crawford, and you only get that if every offer he sees is below Crawford money as well!
It doesn’t matter what Crawford got, It doesn’t matter if he wants to stay, It probably doesn’t even matter if he has his career year this year….
It really boils down to what someone offers him!
Even if what he says is true and he loves it here so will take less money, your talking at most a 1 – 2 mil per year discount or you maybe get one less year promised.
But he is still going to make out in the same area as Crawford.
If 20 Mil per season is too much, how much is NOT too much? 17-19 Mil? Cause thats about the best discount you can expect to get, 1-3 Mil off the highest offer he gets.
1-3 Mil off when your making near 20 Mil is small potatoes so a player might agree to that to stay in the city he loves. In the end you will have saved 7-21 Mil over 7 years.
The only other discount you might get is a reduction of Years, Crawford got 7, Maybe Reyes takes a 5 or 6 year deal with Options on those last 1 or 2 years. If thats the discount then your going to pay full boat for Reyes (20 Mil per, 100 Mil Total) for 5 years and then the option years would be at an even HIGHER per year rate, prob 25 Mil per, So your discount is now NOT a discount it is actually paying MORE per 7 years as Crawford only you can get out after 5 not 7!
It’s really a case of Pay me now or Pay me later! Guarantee the years and you might save one or two mil per year for 7 years, Don’t commit and you wind up paying more per year the last two option years which would make the total package 152 Mil for 7 years! If you thought 142 Mil was too much what do you think of 152 Mil?
There are really only three questions you have to ask yourself to decide. The Offers are not in your contraol so you deal with the money when you know them but you first have to decide:
1 – Is Reyes likely to finish the contract and stay healthy + productive for the next 7 years? 5 Years? 2 Years?
2 – How Much (either per year or per 7 years) is too much to pay for a SS with his numbers
3 – What is a SS (or player) with his numbers likely to be paid over the next 5-7 years?
We are approaching the 20 Mil Barrier Reef in Salary! In the past only guys like A-Rod and Piazza or CyYoung Lately would ever get paid that much.
Now you have Werth making 18 Mil, Crawford is making 20 Mil and soon Reyes will be in that group. 20 Mil is no longer too much for those types of players 30 Mil will be paid to the Greatest of players before the decade is out!
So while paying Reyes 20 Mil seems like a lot NOW it may even feel like a bargain by the time the contract is over! IF he is healthy…
Thats really the question here in resigning Reyes isn’t it?
It isn’t the money, It MAY be the years (which can be solved), but the bottomline is really Will Reyes stay Reyes for the next 5-7 years?
You Answer to that will be the same answer to any contract proposal you see in the offseason!
I say make the offer to pay him 20 Mil per for 5 Years Guaranteed with two Option years at 25 Mil that would kick in if he meets a number of Games played the year before.
If he plays in 130 games in year 5 His next year (maybe both) vests and he gets a raise.
Good for reyes (he makes more than Crawford) and good for us we can get out of the contract in year 5 if your worried about him making it to the end.
And no matter WHAT the deal, If you can manage to not give him a No Trade clause then even BETTER for us. Doubt that will happen with a guy who gave a home town discount he will want in return some ability to STAY home or at least pick his new one.
I think in 5-7 years there are going to be even MORE guys (Pitchers already there) making more than 20 Mil who will make Reyes look like a Bargain. SO the money really is not the issue for me, It’s the length.