Michael Conforto will decline the Mets' qualifying offer and become a free agent, SNY MLB Insider Andy Martino confirmed on Monday night.
Conforto was given the offer on Saturday, worth $18.4 million for the 2022 season, along with Noah Syndergaard, who will likely accept.
Conforto now heads to free agency despite a down 2021, where he had his worst season since 2016 - he slashed .232/.344/.384 in 125 games played.
He had just 14 homers and 20 doubles, putting himself in danger of perhaps having to accept a much less lucrative deal rather than the megadeal he appeared on track for before the season started.
"I stayed in Manhattan for five years," Conforto said after the Mets' final home game of 2021. "I moved out to Long Island this year, and just learning more about the city and the surrounding area. I started dating my fiancée here, so there’s a whole lot that goes into it that you kind of look back on. And not to mention the hundreds of teammates, staff members, security personnel, stadium workers, people that I’ve made relationships with.
"We’ll see what happens in the future, but I definitely loved every second that I was blessed to play here in New York."
Conforto must be hoping that his final 54 games are more of a representative of what he'll sign for on the market - in that stretch, he hit .271/.370/.453 with eight homers and nine doubles.
In his seven-year career, he is a career .255 hitter with an .824 OPS. He is represented by Scott Boras.