MIAMI — Carlos Beltran’s current is contract is up after the 2011 season, but the All-Star center fielder wants to finish his career with the Mets and thinks he can still play at least six more years.
Doing the math, that sounds like Beltran wants a contract extension after proving his toughness to the Mets this month with a surprisingly successful comeback from a bone bruise in his right knee.
Beltran told The Post here before last night’s 9-6 loss to the Marlins that — while he won’t personally approach GM Omar Minaya about an extension this winter — he has made it clear to Minaya that he wants to stay beyond 2011 and will “let my agent deal with that.”
Considering Beltran’s agent is the famously hardball Scott Boras, it will not be surprising if a showdown with the Mets over Beltran’s future comes to pass this offseason. An extension this year would seem unlikely, considering Beltran — who is still owed $37 million over the next two seasons, plus deferred money — remains an injury concern and the Mets don’t appear in budget-expanding mode following the Bernie Madoff scandal.
But Beltran, who has a full no-trade clause in his contract, said he has tried to make it clear as possible to Minaya with his public comments to the media this season that he wants to end his career in a Mets uniform.
“I love it [in New York],” said Beltran, who homered last night. “I love the guys. I’ve made New York my home, and I feel happy. Even though we’ve gone through a lot of terrible things, I still feel like we have the potential to accomplish our goal of winning a World Series.”
Minaya said this week that he has not heard from Beltran’s camp about a possible extension and said the Mets would “cross that bridge if we come to it.”
Beltran said he feels he can talk about the future now that he has calmed concerns about the bone bruise in his knee, which grew so painful in July that he sought an opinion on microfracture surgery.
Beltran subsequently made an impressive return, rejoining the Mets on Sept. 8. He has appeared in 14 games since then, showing along the way that his famed hitting skills hadn’t faded while batting .300 (15-for-50) with two homers and six RBIs.
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David Wright failing to cross home plate in time and a shaky outing from John Maine were the lowlights in last night’s loss.
Wright loafed into home with two out in the fifth on a single by Jeff Francoeur, and it proved costly when he didn’t reach the plate before Francoeur was thrown out at second base.
Wright — who is getting today off after striking out 32 times in 24 games since his concussion — apologized to the team afterward. Maine felt like doing the same after giving up seven earned runs and hitting two batters in 4 2/3 innings in his third start since coming off the disabled list.
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Jose Reyes, who has not played since May 21 because of a torn hamstring tendon in his right leg, ran “with some intensity” for the first time in months at a training facility in New York yesterday, although Jerry Manuel said the Mets still don’t expect the shortstop to play again this season.