The New York Mets said in a statement Monday that they broke no rules after reaching a basic agreement with Norihiro Nakamura, who backed off at the last minute and instead opted to remain with the Kintetsu Buffaloes.

"At no time did the New York Mets break any rules of Major League Baseball in this transaction as was indicated in news reports from Japan," the Mets said in reference to Nakamura's announcement of his decision in Osaka on Saturday.

Nakamura, criticizing Mets officials, said he had decided to stay with the Buffaloes largely because he disapproved with how information of his agreement reached the media.

Reports in Japan said he and his agent, Masami Shigeta, particularly pointed to the official Web sites of the Mets and MLB.

In their statement, the Mets said they entered into an agreement with Nakamura and his agent last week "which was subject only to Mr. Nakamura passing a physical. This is common practice in MLB."

"We were informed by the doctor that Mr. Nakamura has passed his physical and we were ready to sign a contract when we learned that he had decided to continue his career in Japan," the Mets said.