Japanese free agent slugger Norihiro Nakamura on Wednesday left the United States anxiously waiting for a concrete offer following his talks with the New York Mets.
Mets officials said an offer has yet to be made to the third baseman while indicating that the team will take a wait-and-see approach depending on developments in the offseason transfer market.
Nakamura, a two-time winner of the Pacific League RBI title for the Kintetsu Buffaloes, visited Shea Stadium on Tuesday and had a two-hour meeting with Mets general manager Steve Phillips and assistant general manager Jim Duquette.
Both Kintetsu and the Hanshin Tigers have offered him a six-year deal worth more than 3 billion yen but the 29-year-old's aspiration of playing in the major leagues have left his talks with the Japanese clubs inconclusive.
In its Wednesday edition, The New York Times quoted Nakamura as saying, "The money is not that important. . . . What's important is having a good environment to play in and improve."
Other newspapers reported that Nakamura, eyed as the Mets' replacement for third baseman Edgardo Alfonzo, is hoping to seal a three-year deal but his Japanese agent Masami Shigeta refused to disclose any information on figures.
"We won't allow a bargain deal to stand just because they're a major league club. We have offers from Japanese clubs, too, so we'll lay all our cards on the table and start from there," Shigeta said.
No. 600 on auction
The baseball of Barry Bonds' 600th home run will be on auction on a Web site until Saturday in Japan, an organizer of the auction said Thursday.
Bidders can access the auction at www.mastronet.com. The auction closes on Saturday at 10 a.m. Japan time.