CINCINNATI -- Barry Larkin is staying in Cincinnati -- for the rest of this season, anyway.

The Reds captain rejected a trade to the New York Mets, who dropped their efforts to get the All-Star shortstop on Sunday amid suggestions by Larkin that they were misled.

	Larkin

Larkin said that Reds general manager Jim Bowden failed to tell the Mets in advance about his conditions for approving the trade for three players.

"Yeah, I'm disappointed," Mets general manager Steve Phillips. "But at this point, we've got to move forward."

Larkin wanted a multiyear deal before he would leave the only team he has played for during his 15-year career. The Mets were interested in him only as a fill-in this season for shortstop Rey Ordonez, out with a broken arm.

The Mets were willing to part with Alex Escobar and two minor league pitchers for Larkin, according to ESPN's Peter Gammons. Escobar, a 21-year old switch-hitting center fielder, is the Mets' best minor league prospect and one of the best in baseball.

Larkin's decision leaves him right where he was a week ago: headed for free agency after the season unless the Reds improve their contract offer. He has asked for three years at $27.9 million.

"It wasn't easy simply because it's been emotional," Larkin said. "The reality of the Reds trying to trade me is not easy. Still, the reality is that I won't be here next year.

"New York is a place I'd like to spend some time and a place where my family would be comfortable, but under the right circumstances."

Larkin is the second All-Star to block a deal to the Mets since the end of last season. Ken Griffey Jr. vetoed a trade last December, saying he only wanted to play for his hometown Reds.

During the All-Star break, the Reds traded ace Denny Neagle to the New York Yankees.

Neagle already is 2-0 for the first-place Yankees after pitching a four-hitter Sunday in a 5-1 win over Tampa Bay. The crowd at Yankee Stadium chanted Neagle's name in the ninth inning of his 100th career victory.

"I've been traded four times, so I can understand how Barry feels. He's been there his whole career," Neagle said. "My attitude is if you have a chance to go to the postseason, you should take it."

Larkin would like New York -- he named his oldest daughter Brielle D'Shea, after the Mets' stadium -- but made it clear he wouldn't go there for only a half-season.

"This whole time, we went into this thing saying that I would accept a trade if the parameters were correct -- if it was a multiyear deal," Larkin said. "All the parties knew that -- at least, that's what we told Jim. But he obviously didn't relay that to the Mets. I guess they didn't realize what was going on with this entire thing."

Larkin's relationship with Bowden has been strained by the developments of the last few weeks. Phillips confirmed that the Mets agreed to talk to Larkin on the assumption he would accept a trade for this season only.

New York offered to let Larkin finish the season with the Mets, then pay him a bonus if he didn't get a contract extension within 10 days after the World Series. Agent Eric Goldschmidt told them that Larkin wanted a multiyear extension to move -- the same thing he told Bowden.

"I called Jim (on Friday) and said, 'Where is Barry on this?' " Phillips said. "Jim told me, 'Oh, don't worry, he'll accept the deal.' Jim said he might be talking a little bit, but he was convinced he would want to get out of the negativity in Cincinnati.

"It seems there was a misunderstanding. From my discussions with Eric and Jim, they were not on the same page with what was going to happen with his contract."

Bowden said he didn't tell the Mets about Larkin's contract conditions because he didn't learn about them until Thursday, after New York agreed to the tentative deal.

"That's correct because we were not told until after the deal was consummated," Bowden said.

Bowden said the Reds won't try to work out another trade for their captain, who will finish the season in Cincinnati with an uncertain future.

"I think it's a positive sign, that it means he wants to stay a Red," Bowden said. "Hopefully that will allow us to negotiate and eventually get a deal done and have him finish his career here."

The strain of the week showed on Larkin, who has gone into a 3-for-17 slump. He was 1-for-4 in a 5-3 victory Sunday over Arizona, receiving a 30-second ovation before his first at-bat.

"I'm drained when I go home," Larkin said afterward. "Everything is so emotional right now. I've had more phone calls the last three days than I've had in the last three years."

The Mets lobbied Larkin with phone calls and tried to arrange a flight of team officials and players into Cincinnati on Saturday night to sway him, but Larkin wasn't interested.

"He told me he's not the kind of guy who needed that sort of recognition," Phillips said. "We just wanted to show him how much we wanted him to be part of our team."

Phillips said the Mets weren't interested in offering a long-term deal because it would limit their options in the offseason. Ordonez has three years left on a $19 million contract he signed in January, and Seattle shortstop Alex Rodriguez might be a free agent.

"It's going to be an appealing free-agent class out there and we didn't want to make all the decisions today, not knowing what the future is going to be like," Phillips said.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.