DALLAS — Jose Reyes will be arriving to South Beach via the Citi dump.
The All-Star shortstop views his departure from the Mets in those terms, saying Wednesday he felt unwanted by his former team after it never made a concrete offer to retain him.
“I guess they didn’t want me there,” Reyes said upon his introduction as the Marlins’ new shortstop.
Later, speaking with New York reporters, Reyes expanded his comments.
“I always said I wanted to go back to play there, but they didn’t do anything to have me there,” he said. “I don’t know if it’s because of the money or they don’t want me there. They didn’t offer anything.”
Reyes, who signed a six-year contract worth $106 million with the Marlins, called it “weird” that he never heard from anybody associated with the Mets throughout the process.
But Mets general manager Sandy Alderson and manager Terry Collins each said the organization had been consistent throughout the season in letting Reyes know he was wanted.
“If you are asking whether I should have sent [Reyes] a box of chocolates, perhaps I should have done that,” Alderson said. “On the other hand, the box of chocolates would have cost $106 million.”
Alderson said there was no need to make a concrete offer because Reyes’ agent, Peter Greenberg, knew the financial parameters the Mets had in mind. According to sources, the team was willing to spend somewhere in the $85 million range over five years for Reyes with a sixth year option.
Collins said he spoke with Reyes on the final day of the regular season and let him know the Mets wanted him back.
“This organization has said too many good things about him all along for him to think we didn’t want him back,” Collins said. “I’m sure when he sits down and cools down a little bit, he’s got to realize everybody loved him.”
The Marlins were aggressive from the start, meeting with Reyes and his representatives at 12:01 a.m. on Nov. 3, the first moment free agents were allowed to negotiate with outside clubs.
“That showed me they really wanted me there,” Reyes said. “They showed me a lot of love, and I had to make a decision.”
Marlins president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest said Hanley Ramirez will be shifted to third base to accommodate Reyes. Beinfest called it the best left side of the infield in baseball.
“We wanted to improve our club, and we thought [Reyes] was the vehicle to really help us,” said Beinfest, whose Marlins are preparing to open a new downtown ballpark.
mpuma@nypost.com