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The Mets aren't any closer to contending this season despite briefly showing signs of life this month, yet that doesn't mean they're any closer to trading Reyes either. The 28-year-old shortstop is playing like a superstar with a league-leading 54 runs, 12 triples and a .336 batting average. He's also stealing bases at an incredible clip with 26 swipes already in 70 games. The consensus in New York now seems to be that the Mets have to do everything they can to keep Reyes long-term, since no conceivable trade would allow them to replace his bat in the lineup or his glove in the field. As for Reyes, he's indicated that he's not interested in discussing an extension during the season and will test the free agent market. What that effectively means is that the Mets have no leverage in a potential trade since any team acquiring Reyes would certainly want to keep him long-term. The bigger question is if the Mets can even afford to keep Reyes? We all know that owner and COO Fred Wilpon doesn't think Reyes is worth "Carl Crawford money" on the open market, but reports by rival executives say that he'll get at least that. The price tag for Reyes could be upwards of $150 million, and the Mets can't shell out that kind of cash until they figure out what they're doing with Carlos Beltran, David Wright, Johan Santana and all their other high-priced stars. It's a tricky situation for GM Sandy Alderson who can't just let Reyes walk away as a free agent, but can't trade him for 50 cents on the dollar either. This is becoming eerily similar to the Derek Jeter negotiations when the Yankee shortstop essentially held his team hostage until they gave him the deal he wanted. The only difference between Reyes and Jeter is that Reyes is still actually good.
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