The NY Post reports the Mets needed to fly out to California to meet with Zito because he refused to come to New York. This would seem to be a bad sign for the Mets as Zito did fly to Texas to meet with the Rangers.
I'm not convinced it isn't hardball negotiating though. Something similar to a Master of the Universe having a higher chair for himself in his office than he does for his visitors.
What I believe is insurmountable for the Mets is their hopes that a $75MM contract plus the intangibles of New York can overcome a $100MM from Texas. Because of this:
| ---Tax Rates--- | |||||
| State | Low | High | |||
| NEW YORK | 4 | - | 6.85 | ||
| TEXAS | No State Income Tax | ||||
So in addition to those "intangibles" making up the $25MM difference, they also need to account for the $5.1375 MM more in taxes Zito would pay if he took the NY offer. That is effectively a $30.1375MM discount for those "intangibles"!
As Derek Jeter demonstrates, intangibles go a long way, but they didn't even get him the MVP!