New York Mets: 5 Reasons You Can't Blame Jose Reyes For Leaving

Sandy Alderson has let it be known that re-signing Jose Reyes is going to be a top priority of this off-season.  Despite this, many believe that Reyes will not be a Met in 2012.

There was an interesting article on here comparing Jose Reyes to LeBron James.  LeBron has certainly dealt with a ton of criticism for leaving the Cavaliers – some deserved, and some not so deserved.  You can have your opinions on whether or not he should have left Cleveland, but Reyes should not be criticized anywhere close to the way LeBron was.  

The situations are not identical, but are somewhat similar.  As long as Jose doesn't have an hour-long special on ESPN to announce where he's going, Mets fans should not take to the streets burning their Reyes jerseys.  

Here are five reasons you can't blame Jose Reyes if he leaves the Mets this off-season.

5. Marketing

Major League Baseball is a a huge business, and its players are very marketable.  We've all seen the Joe Mauer Gatorade and Head and Shoulders commercials.  Ryan Howard can readily be seen on TV eating a sandwich from Subway and Derek Jeter apparently drives a Ford.

There isn't a better city to market yourself than New York, but going to a new city can create other opportunities.  Everyone currently associates Jose Reyes with the Mets.  If he goes somewhere else, it creates kind of a fresh buzz.  Companies can capitalize on that, and send millions Jose's way to shoot a commercial.

4. Winning

Sadly, there are some Major League Baseball players who legitimately don't care about winning and just play the game for the paycheck.  However, I really don't think Reyes is one of them.

I've watched him play for eight seasons now.  Jose plays the game with so much energy and such a passion.  He plays the game hard and wants to win more than anything.

Are the Mets in a position to be competitive next season?  The optimist in me is saying yes, but realistically, it'll be very tough to finish ahead of the Phillies and Braves.  It may be a few years until the Mets are legitimate contenders again.

Does Jose want to wait around for a chance to win a pennant?  Maybe not.  Would you rather have a chance at a World Series next season or play on a mediocre team for a few years?

3. History as a Met

Statistically, Jose has accomplished some great things in Queens.  This year he became the first Met ever to win a batting title.  He holds team records for most triples and stolen bases, both for a single season and a career.  He has also scored more runs than anybody in Mets history.

In the previous slide, I talked about Jose's passion and his desire to win.  2011 was Mets' the third consecutive losing season, and all Mets fans remember the terrible collapses in the two years prior.  

That is five consecutive seasons of negativity.  2006 seems like ages ago.  Staying in New York might be more of the same negative feeling.  Why would he do that to himself when controls his own destiny?

2. Money

Players do want to win, but money talks as well.  

Nobody really knows exactly what the financial situation is currently for the Mets.  Sandy Alderson has said that he wants to cut payroll to somewhere around $100 million, maybe even less.  Reyes stands to sign a deal for somewhere around $15-20 million per season. I'm no mathematician, but that means Reyes would make up about a fifth of the team's payroll.  

If Alderson wants to cut payroll that much, will he be able to give Reyes the money he wants?  Maybe not.  And I don't expect Jose to take any kind of home-town discount.

1. The Final Game of 2012

I don't know about you, but the last game of the season left a weird taste in my mouth.

Reyes pulled himself from the game after recording a bunt hit in his first at bat.  This move was criticized by many, and I find it really difficult to defend.

The fans at Citi Field booed when he was taken out, angry at Terry Collins for presumably making the decision himself.  After the game, they learned that it was Reyes' decision.

I find the double-standard kind of funny.  Mets fans were all ready to criticize Terry Collins for the decision, but they all the sudden backed off when they found out Reyes asked to be taken out.

Reyes now heads into free-agency, and his final memory as a Met is exiting the final game of a batting-title winning season to a chorus of boos from his home-town fans.  And it doesn't matter if the fans thought it was Terry's decision rather than Reyes'.  They booed a decision made by Reyes, and I'm sure that doesn't sit well with him.

Throughout this season, I had always held out hope that Jose would re-sign and stay a Met for a long time.  This game however, drastically altered my opinion.  

If I had to put money on it, I would say that Jose Reyes will be playing on the West Coast next season – either with the Angels or the Giants.