Blue Jays' Reyes on Mets' Tejada: 'I don't know if he gets it or not'

In 2011, Jose Reyes believed he was grooming Ruben Tejada to be his replacement at shortstop for the New York Mets.  

Four years later, the shortstop position for the Mets remains unsettled and the current Toronto Blue Jay has been critical of Tejada's missed opportunity. 

"I said, 'Man, this position is going to be yours now for a long time,'" Reyes told Anthony Rieber of Newsday. "'Do the right stuff, work hard and you're going to be here in New York. Because the talent is there. You're so young. Twenty-one years old and you play already at a high level in the big leagues. Don't let that ever go away.' And now he's in a tough position because he doesn't even have a position."

Tejada has appeared in 176 games over the past two seasons, hitting .224/.313/.291 with five home runs and 97 strikeouts. 

"Something's wrong," Reyes said. 

"Every time I talk to him, I try to give him some advice," Reyes said. "What can I do? I try to push him to do stuff. I don't know if he gets it or not ... You have to work, man. When you're younger, you think you have everything there for you. But if you do something wrong, it's going to go away. Quick."

The Mets spent their offseason searching for a shortstop, as they were reportedly linked to Troy Tulowitzki and Ian Desmond. However, their pursuit fell short and now the team, who has postseason aspirations, is likely to open the season with Wilmer Flores at the position. 

Tejada opted to take the high road in response to his former teammate's comments. 

"I don't really pay attention to too much," Tejada told Mike Vorkunov of NJ.com. "If I try to pay attention to everybody, it would make me crazy. I try to do my best and come here every day to work hard."