When I asked Hart if there had been any recent negotiations with Heyward about an extension, Hart gave the impression that there hadn’t been any further talks since last offseason.
“He wanted a two-year deal and wasn’t interested in a long-term extension unless the dollars were maybe beyond where the club certainly wanted to go. We had a strong feeling he was going to go on the market. That’s what he wanted to do. We wanted to protect ourselves and position ourselves better. If we elect, next year, to be one of 30 [teams] that compete for Jason on the market then that’s what we’ll do.”
Direct quote from Hart per mlbtr. Heyward obviously made it clear last year that he wanted to hit free agency to make the most he can. I don't blame him. And even if he wanted to stay here there's a huge risk in letting him test free agency so I can't really blame Hart for playing it safe and getting a decent return for him.