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After playing well in 60 games for the New York Mets in 2016, infielder Jose Reyes will be back with the team next season. 

Per Jon Heyman of TodaysKnuckleball.com and James Wagner of the New York Times, the Mets exercised Reyes’ 2017 contract option that pays him the league minimum. 

Major League Baseball hasn’t announced the official minimum salary for next season. It has been $507,500 each of the previous two seasons, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com).

While Reyes will not earn much money from the Mets, he’s still owed $22 million in 2017 from the Colorado Rockies, who released the former All-Star in June after he served a 51-game suspension for violating MLB‘s domestic violence policy. 

Reyes was arrested and charged with abuse of a family or household member last October in Maui, Hawaii, per Thomas Harding of MLB.com. 

The Mets signed Reyes at the end of June. He made his season debut on July 5 and hit .267/.326/.443 with 25 extra-base hits in 255 at-bats. 

Facing some key roster decisions this offseason—most notably if they can re-sign Yoenis Cespedes, assuming he opts out of his contract, which ESPN’s Adam Rubin noted is expected to happen no later than Saturday—keeping talent at an affordable salary is essential for the Mets. 

Reyes is no longer the dynamic talent he was during his prime years, but he played well after sitting out the first half of the 2016 season and is clearly comfortable in the New York market to be worth the small financial investment the team has in him. 

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New York Mets third baseman Jose Reyes enjoyed a pair of big performances Tuesday and Wednesday against the Cincinnati Reds, becoming the first player all season to record back-to-back games in which he both hit a home run and stole a base, per ESPN Stats & Info.

Following a day off Thursday, the 33-year-old infielder will look to make it three games in a row—however unlikely that may be—when the Mets start a three-game road series against the hapless Atlanta Braves on Friday.

Best known for his first tenure with the Mets, which lasted from 2003 to 2011, the former All-Star played for three different teams between 2012 and 2015, spending time with the Miami Marlins, Toronto Blue Jays and Colorado Rockies.

Coming off a down 2015 season and facing an extended suspension for a domestic violence incident, Reyes seemed to be in serious danger of falling off the MLB radar this year, despite having two seasons remaining on the six-year contract he signed with the Marlins prior to the 2012 campaign.

Eventually released by the Rockies back in late June, Reyes rejoined the Mets on a minor league contract shortly thereafter, with the team apparently undeterred by his troubling domestic violence incident.

The move has worked out splendidly if assessed purely from an on-field perspective, as Reyes boasts a .287 batting average, .341 on-base percentage and .485 slugging percentage, with six home runs, 30 runs, 15 RBI and eight stolen bases in 40 games (167 at-bats).

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New York Mets infielder Jose Reyes was held out of the second game in Tuesday’s doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals after going to the hospital for a Grade 1 intercostal strain on his left side, according to CBS New York.

Continue for updates.

Reyes Isn’t Expected to Miss Significant Time

Wednesday, July 27

Reyes and Mets manager Terry Collins are hopeful that the strained left intercostal muscle will only require Reyes to be out of action for a few days, according to James Wagner of the New York Times.

“We’re going to take it day by day and see what happens,” Reyes said, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

Reyes, 33, is hitting .239 with three home runs, eight RBI and three stolen bases in 16 games with the Mets since being called up from the minors on July 5. The team signed him on June 25 shortly after the Colorado Rockies released him the same day. He served a 52-game suspension to start the season after he was arrested in October for allegedly assaulting his wife.

Wilmer Flores will fill in as the team’s third baseman in the meantime. And the Mets are confident he will play well in Reyes’ absence. 

“He’s done a great job,” Collins said of Flores, per Dan Martin of the New York Post. “He is absolutely killing left-handed pitching. When you’re doing that, you’re gonna get a lot of playing time—especially against left-handers.”

Flores has been red-hot in July, hitting .340 with seven home runs, 13 RBI and 11 runs scored in 50 at-bats, so the Mets shouldn’t suffer with Flores temporarily playing an everyday role. 

Meanwhile, Curtis Granderson is sliding into the leadoff spot in the team’s batting order on Wednesday night, according to Adam Rubin of ESPN, and will likely remain there until Reyes returns.

You can follow Timothy Rapp on Twitter.

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Jose Reyes is headed back to where his career started: New York.

The Mets announced Saturday they signed Reyes to a minor league contract and that he will report to the Brooklyn Cyclones Sunday, per USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale. Newsday‘s Marc Carig provided comments from New York general manager Sandy Alderson and Reyes:

Alderson told reporters Reyes will play third base on Sunday.

Reyes has not played in the big leagues in 2016 after he was suspended without pay through May 31—which cost him 52 games and $7.06 million, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports—for violating Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy.

Reyes was arrested in November and charged with abuse of a family and/or household member, per a Maui Police Department report (via MLB.com’s Thomas Harding).

The report noted Reyes and his wife got into an argument at a hotel in Hawaii that “turned physical and resulted in injuries. Mrs. Reyes was treated by medics at the scene and later transported to the Maui Memorial Medical Center for further treatment.”

Reyes had a trial set for April, but the charges were dropped when his wife did not cooperate with prosecutors, according to the Associated Press (h/t Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post).

The Colorado Rockies, who acquired Reyes from the Toronto Blue Jays last July, designated the 33-year-old for assignment June 15 after he was reinstated from the restricted list following a nine-game rehab stint in Triple-A.

Rockies general manager Jeff Bridich told Harding the team “determined that it was best we part ways—best for the direction of the organization, best for what was going on in the clubhouse and best for Jose.”

Reyes was with the Mets from 2003-11, playing in four All-Star Games and winning the National League batting title in his final season with a .337 average.

His injury history and age make it unlikely he’ll be that kind of player again, but New York needed to bolster its offense, which ranks 28th in the majors in runs scored.

The Mets have a pitching staff capable of carrying them deep into October, but their offense has not held up its end of the bargain despite accounting for 74.3 percent of a $135.2 million payroll, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts.

Reyes wouldn’t be expected to carry the lineup if he is called up to the majors, but his ability to put the ball in play and his speed on the bases could help New York challenge the first-place Washington Nationals in the NL East.

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Back when Jose Reyes was an All-Star, the New York Mets didn’t even offer him a contract. Now that he’s absolutely not an All-Star, the Mets want him back.

UPDATE (2:45 PM ET, Saturday, June 25): the deal is now official, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com—who has been on the story from the start:

/End of update

The crazy part about all that is the Mets were right then and they’re also right now.

They avoided disaster when they didn’t try to counter the six-year, $106 million contract offer Reyes eventually signed with the Miami Marlins back in December 2011. And Reyes might just help them avoid disaster by signing a no-risk deal with them Saturday, as multiple reports Friday night (including this one from Anthony DiComo of MLB.com) said he likely will.

Because the Colorado Rockies released Reyes in the fifth year of that six-year deal he signed with the Marlins, the Rox remain responsible for paying him the bulk of the $40-plus million he has coming. The Mets would pay just the prorated major league minimum, and they only pay that for as long as Reyes remains on their big league roster.

Given that someone has to take that roster spot for at least the big league minimum, Reyes costs the Mets nothing. Given the struggle the Mets have had finding major league-caliber players to fill out their bench, he doesn’t block anyone of importance, either.

He doesn’t keep them from signing Yulieski Gourriel, if the Mets can find a way to get the Cuban free agent. He doesn’t take at-bats away from Asdrubal Cabrera, except when he gives manager Terry Collins a chance to give his starting shortstop a needed break.

As Collins made clear to reporters, including Fred Kerber of the New York Post, the plan would be to play Reyes a little bit of everywhere—around the infield and perhaps even in the outfield. The idea would be to find out if he can provide a boost to a Mets team that has little speed and has struggled to score runs with anything but home runs.

To find out if he can do that, the Mets would first send Reyes to the minor leagues. He hasn’t played anywhere but shortstop in more than a decade and has never played anywhere but middle infield as a professional. He’d need a few games to get ready.

With any other team in any other situation, Reyes might mope if presented with all that. The difference here is he never wanted to leave the Mets and always wanted to return. He never gave up his house on Long Island.

Besides, it’s not like other teams have been lining up to give him a chance. Between his greatly diminished abilities on the field and his problems off it, Reyes’ value dropped to near zero this season.

The Rockies didn’t want him when his domestic violence suspension ended on June 1. They obviously couldn’t find any team to take on even a small part of his salary in a trade, or they wouldn’t have released him.

Back when baseball announced Reyes’ suspension in the middle of May, I wrote about how little value he had and wondered if any team would take him. Back then, it didn’t seem the Mets would want or need him.

The domestic violence incident was part of it, to be sure, but only a part. Aroldis Chapman served a domestic violence suspension, too, and not only is he closing without controversy for the New York Yankees, but plenty of other teams want to trade for him in July or sign him as a free agent this winter as well.

As for Reyes, things have changed since last month, more for the Mets than for him. Reyes’ old buddy David Wright had neck surgery and may not play again this season. The Mets have fallen behind the Washington Nationals in the National League East, although a Mets win and a Nationals loss Friday cut the deficit to three games.

Already, the Mets have added James Loney (who had a big night in Friday’s win in Atlanta) and Kelly Johnson. Even with that, it was just five days ago that a frustrated Collins told reporters “we may shake some things up.”

Since then, the Mets have won three of four, but they’ve also watched their best hitter (Yoenis Cespedes) deal with a wrist problem and an ankle problem and their best pitcher (Noah Syndergaard) go off to get his elbow examined. Another rotation staple, Steven Matz, has admitted to elbow tightness after each of his last two starts.

All those guys mean more to the Mets’ chances of going back to the playoffs than Reyes does. But that doesn’t mean he can’t help.

I’m not sure he can. No one can be sure of that.

But now that he costs a lot closer to $100,000 than to $100 million, Reyes is worth a shot.

Danny Knobler covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report.

Follow Danny on Twitter and talk baseball.

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After Jose Reyes was designated for assignment by the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday, per an official team announcement, speculation is swirling about the All-Star shortstop’s future.

Continue for updates.

Royals Reportedly in on Reyes

Thursday, June 16

Alex Cora of ESPN reported the Kansas City Royals are considering signing Reyes to play second base.

Mets, Yankees Not Interested in Reyes

Wednesday, June 15

MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported the news on the Yankees, adding the Mets can also be ruled out as a possible destination and indicating the club isn’t interested in reuniting with Reyes.  

Reyes Would Bring Veteran Presence to New Team

The 33-year-old veteran played for the Mets from 2003 to 2011, receiving four All-Star bids, leading the National League in stolen bases three times and winning an NL batting title in that span.

Per Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post, the Rockies have 10 days to either release or trade Reyes and are due to pay him $41 million in salary.

Colorado general manager Jeff Bridich spoke Wednesday about trade offers the front office has fielded.

“There were a lot of things the last week to two weeks that have come and gone,” said Bridich, per Saunders. “(There were) a couple of teams poking around. Nothing real serious ever really materialized. But Jose is still a very talented player.”

Gifted as he may be, Reyes is not the player he once was and can’t swipe bases at near the rate he used to. His defense is rather poor as well—his ultimate zone rating of minus-6.6 was fourth-worst for his position last season, per FanGraphs.

Prospective trade suitors may also view Reyes as radioactive since he just came off the restricted list after a suspension for violating the league’s domestic violence policy.

It’s unlikely the Rockies will be able to swing a deal for Reyes given his exorbitant contract situation, so they’re bound to release him near the end of the 10-day ultimatum.

Reyes’ outlook to continue his career at the MLB level is bound to improve if and when he hits the open market. Then a team can have him at a massive bargain compared to the money he commands at the moment.

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The Colorado Rockies announced Wednesday they have designated shortstop Jose Reyes for assignment.

Reyes has yet to play a game in 2016. Major League Baseball suspended the 33-year-old through the end of May for a violation of the league’s domestic violence policy. Before Wednesday’s move, Reyes had been on a minor league rehab assignment with Colorado’s Triple-A affiliate, the Albuquerque Isotopes. 

According to Spotrac, Reyes is signed through 2018 and is due $22 million in each season. He has a club option for 2018 that includes a $4 million buyout.

The Rockies now have 10 days to decide Reyes’ future. They can trade him to another team—albeit while likely paying a large chunk of his deal. Colorado can also release him outright or place him on waivers. Should nobody pick take him off waivers, the Rockies could reinstate him to the 40-man roster.

In all likelihood, though, this represents the end of Reyes’ brief time in the Mile High City. He is declining on the field, as he had a .274/.310/.378 slash line last year between his time with the Rockies and Toronto Blue Jays. According to FanGraphs, Reyes was also one of the worst defensive shortstops in MLB. He tied for the least defensive runs saved with minus-eight and was fourth-worst in ultimate zone rating per 150 games (-7.5).

Adding Reyes to Colorado’s starting lineup would mean displacing Trevor Story, who has been one of the bigger surprises in baseball. The rookie shortstop is batting .265 with 17 home runs and 45 runs batted in. His 1.5 WAR is third among qualified Rockies position players, per FanGraphs.

Another team could give Reyes a shot once he clears waivers. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen offered a lukewarm endorsement of the four-time All-Star:

MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reported the New York Yankees won’t be among those interested. Heyman, writing for Today’s Knuckleball, reported on June 2 the Yankees showed interest in Reyes last year after his trade to the Rockies.

If he becomes a free agent, Reyes could be a good low-cost signing for a playoff contender during the back half of the regular season.

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The MLB announcement Friday said Jose Reyes can come back to the major leagues on June 1.

Too bad it’s not June 1, 2011.

Reyes had real value then, as a .335 hitter and a speedy shortstop who was one of the game’s most exciting players. Five years on, he’s no longer speedy or exciting, a decline that started before the domestic-violence incident that led to the 52-game suspension that will run out at the end of May.

Oh, and he has a contract that will pay him another $22 million in 2017 and includes a $4 million buyout option for 2018. 

He’s property of the Colorado Rockies for now, but in rookie Trevor Story, they have a shortstop they actually like. Word is they have no use for Reyes, and that they didn’t even before he was arrested last October for allegedly assaulting his wife in a Hawaii hotel room.

As ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark tweeted after the suspension was announced:

The Rockies took on Reyes last July, only because it enabled them to save about $50 million of what they owed Troy Tulowitzki and add much-needed pitching prospects in the process. The Toronto Blue Jays were happy to move Reyes, whose offense had become nearly nonexistent and whose defense was worse.

Reyes had little value then, at age 32. He has even less value now, as he approaches his 33rd birthday on June 11.

ESPN.com’s Buster Olney tweeted Friday morning that there were teams “interested” in dealing for Reyes, although he later clarified that by saying the Rockies would need to eat much of the money left on the contract.

Fair enough. Anyone can be traded, if you structure the deal right. If the Rockies eat much of the money and include a prospect or a draft pick, perhaps a rebuilding team like the Atlanta Braves would bite.

The Braves have big-time shortstop prospects, but their stopgap solution of using Erick Aybar at the position this year has been a disaster. The Braves’ combined OPS from the shortstop position (.429) is nearly 100 points lower than the next-worst team, per FanGraphs.

As for the other teams struggling for offense at shortstop, the Los Angeles Angels expect Andrelton Simmons to come back (and just added Brendan Ryan as a stopgap), and the Miami Marlins and Detroit Tigers both have defense-first shortstops they like (Adeiny Hechavarria and Jose Iglesias).

Reyes wouldn’t be an improvement, just as he wouldn’t be an improvement over Story, who has 11 home runs and three triples and is one of the early leaders in the National League Rookie of the Year race.

If he’s cheap enough, Reyes might have some value as a utility guy, but do you want him in your clubhouse if he’s not playing regularly?

The Rockies haven’t had to deal with Reyes so far this year, because baseball put him on paid leave while investigating the domestic-violence incident. In a statement released Friday announcing the 52-game suspension, Commissioner Rob Manfred said the investigation took this long because of criminal charges in Hawaii, which were later dismissed when Reyes’ wife declined to cooperate.

In Friday’s announcement, MLB made Reyes’ unpaid suspension retroactive to Feb. 23, meaning he’ll have to repay the salary he has already received this season. In all, he’ll lose just over $7 million of the $22 million he was due in 2016.

Manfred’s statement said Reyes has committed to treatment and also to contribute $100,000 to one or more charitable organizations focused on preventing and treating survivors of domestic violence.

Reyes also released a statement Friday that said he wanted to “apologize for everything that has happened.” He showed more contrition than Aroldis Chapman, who has continued to maintain he did nothing wrong in the domestic-violence incident that led to his own 30-game suspension, per Billy Witz of the New York Times.

Chapman, despite the incident, has been welcomed with open arms by the New York Yankees and by Yankee fans. A few 100 mph fastballs were all it took.

Reyes can’t throw 100 mph, nor can he hit or run like he used to when he was a star with the New York Mets. If he could, the Rockies would have no problem finding a taker.

Reyes isn’t that player anymore. I’m not the biggest fan of WAR as a way to evaluate players, but it’s hard to argue with the Baseball-Reference.com WAR numbers for Reyes.

He peaked at 5.8 in 2006 (second to Carlos Guillen among full-time shortstops). He put up a 4.7 in 2011 (third behind Tulowitzki and Asdrubal Cabrera).

And last year? He was at 0.3. After the midseason trade to the Rockies, he was minus-0.2.

Under the terms of his suspension, Reyes can now start working out in extended spring training, and beginning June 1, he can join a minor league team for a rehabilitation assignment. Perhaps he can prove that he still has value.

The Rockies can only hope he does.

Danny Knobler covers Major League Baseball as a national columnist for Bleacher Report.

Follow Danny on Twitter and talk baseball.

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Major League Baseball has suspended Colorado Rockies shortstop Jose Reyes without pay through May 31 after he was ordered to stand trial on domestic abuse charges, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney.

Yahoo Sports’ Big League Stew provided the league’s official statement Friday, which confirmed the unpaid suspension is retroactive to Feb. 23:

Reyes also released a statement shortly after MLB‘s announcement, according to Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal:

Commissioner Rob Manfred previously placed Reyes on paid leave after the 32-year-old allegedly assaulted his wife in a Hawaii hotel room, according to Hawaii News Now’s Chelsea Davis, but he’ll officially lose $7.06 million in game checks now that terms of the cumulative 52-game suspension are official, per Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan.

“His wife told responding officers that Reyes grabbed her off the bed and shoved her,” Davis reported. “Sources say she also told police that he grabbed her throat and shoved her into the sliding glass balcony door.”

According to ESPN.com, Reyes posted $1,000 bail and was ordered to stay away from his wife for three days following the incident.

However, charges against the shortstop were dropped after his wife failed to cooperate with prosecutors, according to the Associated Press. Should she change her mind and decide to cooperate within the next two years, charges can be refiled.

In baseball terms, Reyes is becoming an afterthought for the Rockies.

Rookie Trevor Story has been a revelation, batting .266 with 11 home runs and 27 RBI. He’s also clubbed three triples and seven doubles during his rapid rise in the Rockies’ order, earning National League Rookie of the Month honors in April.

Beyond Story’s development into an offensive linchpin for the Rockies, Reyes is staring at a long road back from a polish perspective.

“He has been working out on his own in New York, away from the Rockies’ facilities in Colorado and Arizona, but even if he returned tomorrow, Reyes would still likely need weeks to ready himself for major league games,” the Denver Post‘s Nick Groke wrote. “He missed all of spring training and any live competition since last fall.”

And then there’s the matter of the Rockies’ monetary commitment to Reyes. The veteran shortstop is earning $22 million this season—part of which the team will recoup following the suspension, per Groke—and another $22 million next season before the team can decline his $22 million club option for 2018.

With Story established as the franchise’s future shortstop and Reyes a past-his-prime piece who figures to have a hard time garnering regular playing time, the Rockies could be in a bind when it comes to relieving themselves of a hefty financial burden.

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As Colorado Rockies shortstop Jose Reyes braces for a potential suspension, rumors are swirling regarding potential interest in the veteran on the trade market.

Continue for updates.

Report: Reyes Garnering Trade Interest

Friday, May 13

According to ESPN’s Buster Olney, teams have shown a willingness to acquire Reyes, should Colorado decide to deal him.

Reyes’ suspension for a domestic violence incident involving his wife in October is expected to be handed down soon, per Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com. A ban of at least 60 games is likely, per MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, but the 34 games he has already missed would count as part of the punishment.

The Rockies acquired Reyes in a trade that sent shortstop Troy Tulowitzki to the Toronto Blue Jays last season.

Reyes hit .259 with three home runs, 19 RBI and eight stolen bases in 47 games with Colorado, and he was expected to start in 2016.

The suspension put him in a state of flux, however, and allowed 23-year-old Trevor Story to receive increased playing time. He has flourished with a .266 batting average, 11 home runs and 27 RBI, making Reyes expendable.

While the 32-year-old native of the Dominican Republic is a four-time All Star and former batting champion, his numbers have declined since leaving the New York Mets following the 2011 season.

Reyes has played for the Miami Marlins, Blue Jays and Rockies in four seasons since then, and a combination of injuries and inconsistent play have rendered him a shell of his former self.

He still managed to hit .274 and steal 24 bases in 116 games last year, so even though he is no longer elite, he can still be somewhat productive in comparison to the league average at shortstop.

Due to Reyes’ off-field issues and the fact that the Rockies already have a suitable replacement at shortstop, he could come at a discounted price.

The veteran is set to make $22 million in 2016 and 2017, according to Spotrac.com, however, which means acquiring him will be a significant risk even if it doesn’t take much in terms of assets to land him.

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