After becoming a free agent earlier today, 33-year-old shortstop Jose Reyes chose to sign a minor league deal with the New York Mets – the team he spent the first nine years of his Major League career with.

The Mets are sending Reyes to High-A Brooklyn to begin his road back to the show. Reyes is slated to play third base for the Cyclones on Sunday, and speak to the media following the game.

We have signed José Reyes to a minor league contract. He will report to the @BKCyclones. #Mets pic.twitter.com/ZlISifogm4

— New York Mets (@Mets) June 25, 2016

Mets general manager Sandy Alderson told Adam Rubin of ESPN New York that Reyes is expected to be in the minors for a week to ten days before re-joining the Mets. After Reyes appears in two games for Brooklyn, the 33-year-old Reyes is expected to move onto a higher minor league level in Double-A Binghamton or Triple-A Las Vegas.

Reyes was a New York Met from 2003-2011 after the team signed him as a teenager from the Dominican Republic in 1999.  After the 2011 season, in-which Reyes had a batting average of .337 to win the batting title, Reyes signed a six-year $106 million deal with the Mets’ divisional rival the Miami Marlins.

Miami decided to only hold onto Reyes for one year before trading him to the Toronto Blue Jays on November 13, 2012. Reyes would then go onto spend his next three seasons with the Blue Jays before Toronto sent him to the Rockies in the massive Troy Tulowitzki that involved top pitching prospect Miguel Castro last July.

On May 13th of this season, Reyes was handed a 51-game suspension under MLB’s new domestic violence policy as a result of a physical altercation with his wife back in October, and his wife declined to cooperate with the investigation, leading Reyes to get off without criminal punishment. The Rockies reinstated Reyes two days ago, and elected to designate Reyes for assignment with the emergence of Trevor Story, leading to Reyes’ return to New York.

“As I have expressed in the past, I deeply regret the incident that occurred and remain remorseful and apologetic to my family,” Reyes said in a statement that was posted on his official Twitter account. “I have completed the counseling required by MLB, have been in ongoing therapy, and will continue with counseling going forward. I appreciate the Mets organization for believing in me and providing the opportunity to come back home to New York.”

Colorado will be responsible for paying the remaining $39 million on Reyes’ salary from the deal signed back with the Marlins in the winter of 2011. The Mets will pay Reyes the MLB minimum of $507,500 under his current minor league level contact.

Reyes, a four-time MLB all-star, batted .292/.341/.441 with 81 home runs and 423 runs batted in to go with 370 stolen bases in first nine years in New York. Reyes lead the Majors in stolen bases three times with the Mets and four times with triples.

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