Scott Boras was in The Bronx yesterday to participate in the Mark Teixeira press conference and decided to extend his New York stay to have lunch today with Mets GM Omar Minaya to discuss free-agent starters Derek Lowe and Oliver Perez, The Post has learned.
Mets officials continue to say that the club is not interested in another Boras client, Manny Ramirez.
Instead, the Mets remain fixated on finding a starter to insert near the top of the rotation. They have made a three-year, $36 million bid already for Lowe that was rejected. The Mets have been resistant to increase the offer, believing that the market for Lowe is not as strong as expected earlier in the offseason. Boras, obviously, is trying to get more than $12 million annually for his client and/or a guaranteed fourth year on a contract.
The Mets also have shown a willingness to turn to the less expensive Perez if negotiations on Lowe fail. The Mets consider Randy Wolf the fallback position if they are unable to sign either Lowe or Perez.