The 26-year-old spent the past nine years in the Mets organization, and David Wright was the only longer-tenured active Met. In six MLB seasons, the light-hitting middle infielder batted .255/.330/.323, exhibiting a keener batting eye over the past two years.
Although Asdrubal Cabrera may open the season on the disabled list, the Mets placed Tejada on waivers on Tuesday. He was set to earn $3 million in 2016 before entering free agency as a result of receiving an extra day of service time in an arbitration settlement.
Never their first choice, Tejada nevertheless always found himself receiving reps at short.