NASHVILLE — As the clock ticked toward Ben Zobrist’s big decision, the free agent’s representatives believed the Mets would go as high as $60 million over four years to secure their top target.
But a maneuver outside the Mets’ control superseded that, and that’s why Zobrist wore a Cubs cap as he spoke to the media Wednesday afternoon at the Gaylord Opryland.
“I was very serious about going there,” Zobrist said of the Mets. “I was serious about going every place that I looked at. And I think in the end, the main theme that we talked about at the beginning of the process that was going to be important was proximity to here, where we live.