Rockies unable to find a trade partner for Reyes, so now they'll eat his contract
Colorado will now have to release Jose Reyes
By
Mike Axisa
•
1 min read
One week after officially beginning the process of cutting ties with Jose Reyes, the Rockies have placed their high priced shortstop on release waivers. The team made the announcement Thursday afternoon.
#Rockies today requested waivers on INF Jose Reyes for the purpose of granting his unconditional release. The 40-man roster has 39 players.
— Rockies PR (@RockiesPR) June 23, 2016
The other 29 teams now have 48 hours to claim Reyes and his contract. The waiver fee is only $1, but there is roughly $40 million remaining on his contract through next year, and no team is going to take that on.
Once Reyes clears waivers and is released, he'll be a free agent and able to sign with any team for the pro-rated portion of the league minimum. The Rockies will still owe him the remainder of his contract.
The fact Colorado has placed Reyes on release waivers indicates no team was interested in trading for him, not even at minimal cost. The Rockies surely hoped to get some salary relief in a trade, even if it meant receiving non-prospects in return.
Eating $40 million in salary is not an easy pill to swallow, though keep in mind the Rockies still saved $60 million or so in the Reyes-Troy Tulowitzki trade. Pitching prospect Jeff Hoffman and the salary relief was the key to that trade, not Reyes.
Reyes finished serving his 51-game suspension under the league's domestic violence policy on June 1. He spent time in the minors on a tune-up assignment before the Rockies designated him for assignment. The 33-year-old hit .274/.310/.378 (82 OPS+) last year.
The Royals and Mets have been rumored to have interest in Reyes in recent days. Obviously Reyes is a better fit for some teams than others.
