A new day for Mets: Out with Ollie

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- For a player whose lasting Mets legacy will be the boisterous booing that his mere presence ignited from the fan base, Oliver Perez didn't act as if he wanted his time here to end.

That much was evident in the way the lefthander reacted to the news Monday that he was getting released, a decision he admitted he knew was inevitable.

Once he emerged from a brief early-morning meeting with general manager Sandy Alderson and manager Terry Collins, Perez swiftly walked around the Mets' clubhouse, making the rounds with his teammates. He shared the news, shook their hands and said his goodbyes.

As Perez spoke with reporters in front of his locker, he appeared to be on the verge of tears on more than one occasion. He said once he was called in to meet with Alderson, he knew his time with the Mets was over, but that didn't make hearing it any easier.

"You might know before, but when they tell you, you don't feel great," he said. "I think when you get fired from anywhere, you feel sad. It's not a good moment. You have to be strong, you know, and my life is not over. I have to move on."

By releasing Perez, the Mets will eat the $12 million remaining on his three-year, $36-million contract. Any team that signs him will be on the hook for only $414,000, the major-league minimum salary.

Perez said Alderson told him during their meeting that cutting ties "was the best for the team and the best for me."

Perez has been a lightning rod for Mets fans, with his failure to pitch at a level consistent with his paycheck a convenient symbol of the last few disappointing seasons.

After Perez gave up two home runs in his last outing Saturday, the resounding sound of boos from the nearly 5,000 fans at Digital Domain Park made the stadium sound as if there were three times as many people in the crowd. But Perez said Monday that he understands the fans' disdain for him. "I knew I did everything I can to get better," he said. "The result doesn't look great. I think they're the people to say you're not doing great because they pay to see us play.

"I did everything I can and I think I can do better than that, which is why I don't want to quit. I want to get better for my family."

The Mets allowed Perez to try out as a starter at the beginning of spring training, and when that failed, they tried to convert him into a lefthanded relief specialist. But Alderson said it became increasingly clear that his stuff wasn't effective enough to get major-leaguers out on a regular basis.

"The velocity wasn't there, the command wasn't there," Alderson said. "We really didn't have to go too far beyond that to make a decision . . . We just got to the point where there was no reason to prolong it."

Perez said he had no qualms with how the Mets handled him in spring training.

"They gave me an opportunity," he said. "They were fair."

Perez instead blamed himself, acknowledging that he didn't do enough to persuade the Mets to try to get some kind of return on the $12 million they're paying him this season. Perez finishes his five years with the Mets with a 29-29 record and 4.71 ERA in 101 appearances, including 91 starts.

Now, with Perez and Castillo no longer in camp, the Mets are eager to put that chapter behind them and have the focus turn to the guys who will be on their team this year.

"It's time to move on," Collins said. "It's time to turn the page and now let's talk about who is going to be here and what this club is going to be about. I think I'm probably excited about that."