NY Mets Ownership Candidates: Who will buy the Amazins?

Steve Cohen – New York Billionaire Titan

As the perceived front-runner to win the bidding for the team, Steve Cohen and his massive personal wealth is an intriguing prospect for Mets fans who have been subjected to the frugal ownership of the ‘Coupons’ since Fred Wilson bought Nelson Doubleday Jr’s majority stake in the franchise in 2002.

After Cohen’s initial offer for the team fell apart this past February 6th due to the Wilpon’s unreasonable terms that would have allowed them to remain part of the organization as controlling owners for a five-year period after the deal.

Then there was the issue of selling the team to Cohen without including the rights to SportsNet New York (SNY), which generates a large amount of revenue for the franchise.

Therefore, in order for a deal to be reached, the potential new owners should only come to an agreement that includes the team-owned cable network and controlling power of the organization in the deal. Once the check is signed, and the deal is closed, the new owners need to control everything in order to operate in full capacity.

Frankly, for north of $2 billion, the Wilpon’s have the nerve to ask to remain on the team with controlling interest. Luckily, I think these groups recognize the ludicrously of such terms.

Lastly, as Cohen is already a minority owner with an 8% stake in the team, there might not be much of a transitional period in terms of the front office along with the operations of the Mets Minor League affiliates.

This is important as the team gears up for a pivotal offseason that will see the end of several veteran contracts, multiple arbitration hearings, and maybe even a Conforto extension?

As the negotiations stand today, unless the price is right for Alex Rodriguez’s bid for the team, Cohen remains the most likely to close a deal by the end of the year.

A-Rod, J-Lo, and Company

Alex Rodriguez’s buying group includes several athletes, featuring both current and former NFL Stars Travis Kelce, DeMarco Murray, and Brian Urlacher, along with NBA All-Star Bradley Beal.

So it seems that the front office’s current philosophy could remain intact with this crowd of investors. The team’s current Executive VP & GM, Brodie Van Wagenen has said on multiple occasions that under his leadership, the front office would transition the franchise into a Player’s First Organization.

In fact, his exact words during his introductory press conference from two seasons ago were, “Part of the progressive ideas I have. The GM needs to be visible and needs to have a personal relationship with the players on the team. Obviously I have that with some of them and I look forward to building that with others.”

Therefore, the organization – whether they keep BVW on or not – has already been primed to receive owners with this mentality right away.

In fact, I think one of A-Rod’s potential strengths would be how involved he is in the front office, such as putting together a team of experienced baseball executives much like the front office currently is structured.

The hiring of Allard Baird as VP, Assistant GM, and Scouting & Player Development signaled the start of their investments into the analytics department with new technology and the supplemental hiring of analytics expert Adam Guttridge as assistant GM, for example.

For Rodriguez, it might make sense to keep things running as they are for the most part in the short term as he is evidently of the mindset of a player-first organization.

Plus, conducting a GM search while overhauling the front office in the middle of the Winter Meetings (the time in which a deal is expected to be finalized) would not be conducive to success in 2021.

The Mets could use some additional star power to go along with their young and dynamic pool of current and future MLB stars. And of course, A-Rod would have the added incentive to become a perennial NL East winner – not to be outshined by the Derek Jeter-run Miami Marlin front office.

Josh Harris and David Blitzer – Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment

As the owners of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and the NHL’s New Jersey Devils – along with their ventures into the English Premier League (Crystal Palace F.C.), the AHL (Binghamton Devils), the NBA G League (Delaware Blue Coats), and their most recent minority stake in the NFL’s Pittsburg Steelers, it doesn’t feel like the New York Mets would be their top priority.

And quite frankly, it also doesn’t appear that they would be any different than the Wilpons despite each of their own billionaire-statuses.

Ask yourselves: what have any of the above franchises won in the last ten, five, or even three years?  In fact, none of their ventures have managed to win a championship nor reach their postseason on a semi-consistent basis.

At least with Steve Cohen comes the potential a massive bankroll (larger than Harris and Blitzer combined) to rival the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers in terms of spending on talent. Even A-Rod brings a unique and tested passion to win as a former 14x All-Star and World Series champion along with his partners’ playing experience.

Josh Harris and David Blitzer on the other hand would not bring anything new or different to the table in terms of winning championships. Plus, it’s already been reported that they’re having money trouble raising cash on hand to put forward their final bid for the organization.

Regardless of which group wins out, there’s no denying that each would be an instant improvement over the Coupons. But in the case of this particular duo, it doesn’t seem like their emergence would be conducive to success in 2021 or the years to follow.

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Who do you think ends up buying the Mets?