PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Three days after the New York Mets informed second baseman Luis Castillo he was being released, left-hander Oliver Perez experienced the same fate Monday.

Team officials informed Perez he was being let go despite being owed $12 million in the final year of his contract. The Mets had begun the weekend already having absorbed Castillo's $6 million as the purge of bloated contracts from Omar Minaya's era as general manager continued.

"When they told me, I almost knew what they were going to tell me," Perez said inside the clubhouse at the team's spring training complex after shaking hands with teammates. "It's one of those times you don't feel great, but I don't want to quit."

Perez indicated he believed he got a fair shot from the Mets' new regime.

"I think they gave me an opportunity," he said. "They were fair with me when I came here. 'We're going to give you an opportunity to be a starter.' I didn't do anything great. They moved me to the bullpen trying to be a lefty specialist. And the last game, that was a real horrible job."

Perez, 29, is in the final season of a three-year, $36 million deal. He went 3-9 with a 6.81 ERA in 31 appearances (21 starts) during the first two seasons of the contract.

The amount owed to Perez ranks near the top of the unofficial list of largest contracts eaten in organization history, with Castillo also high on the list. Perez is No. 1 in terms of outright money owed; however, Bobby Bonilla worked out a deal that eclipses $12 million.

When the Mets cut bait with Bonilla after the 1999 season, they were on the hook for $5.9 million. Instead, the Mets agreed to pay Bonilla $29.8 million between 2011 and 2035. Those annual $1,193,248.20 payments begin July 1.