The New York Mets are withholding injured closer Francisco Rodriguez’s salary while he’s sidelined and want to convert his contract to a non-guaranteed deal.
Rodriguez was placed on the disqualified list on Tuesday, six days after he tore a ligament in the thumb of his pitching hand while punching his girlfriend’s father outside a family lounge at Citi Field. Rodriguez had surgery on Tuesday to repair the self-inflicted injury and is expected to miss the rest of the season.
The Mets said he won’t be paid while on the disqualified list. In addition, they said they were exercising a contractual right to convert the rest of his US$37 million, three-year deal to non-guaranteed, meaning they could try to avoid paying most of what’s left on it.
The players’ association planned to fight the team’s actions.
The Mets announced the move before Tuesday night’s game at Houston in a conference call that included chief operating officer Jeff Wilpon, general manager Omar Minaya and executive vice president and general counsel David Cohen.
Rodriguez, a four-time All-Star, was suspended for two days without pay following the fight outside a family room at the ballpark on Wednesday last week.
By going on the disqualified list, Rodriguez will lose US$3,016,393 of his US$11.5 million salary this year. Added to the US$125,683 he lost when the Mets put him on the restricted list for two days last week, the altercation already has cost him US$3,142,076.
By converting his contract to non-guaranteed, the Mets gave themselves the ability to release Rodriguez in the early part of next spring for 30 days’ termination pay. That would mean paying US$1,885,246 rather than his US$11.5 million salary next year.
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