The 3 worst Mets General Managers in team history ranked

Complaining? We all love to complain about how the New York Mets are run, and about the decisions that are made. But who’s responsible? So who do we blame?

Most of the fault is thrust upon the general manager of any baseball team. And the Mets have had some pretty inept general managers…some worse than others.

Here are the three worst general managers in New York Mets history:

3. Brodie Van Wagenen was way out of his league as general manager of the New York Mets.

Brodie Van Wagenen was a very curious choice. He was brought in late in 2018 to replace Sandy Alderson who was stepping down for health reasons. He was an agent. He was not a baseball front office executive, nor was he anyone’s protégé. The Mets have made strange moves over the years, and this lived up to the organization’s reputation for dysfunction.

Van Wagenen sold the Mets a bill of goods as Yoenis Cespedes’ agent…when he talked them into re-negotiating a three-year contract (Cespedes opted out after Year 1) into a five-year contract that made him the highest paid player (at the time) in Mets history. Of course, we all know what happened with Cespedes.

So the Mets decided to make him their General Manager. And he immediately acquires, and signs, a couple of his former clients – Robinson Cano (trade) and Jed Lowrie (free agent signing). Both acquisitions were terrible debacles. Yeah, yeah, yeah…the Mets got Edwin Diaz in the deal for Cano. But Diaz, in reality, has had one super season (2022) and the rest have been pedestrian, or worse.

Van Wagenen had no business being the GM of the Mets…or ANY baseball team for that matter. And he was quickly and summarily dismissed at the end of the 2020 season…a short tenure that still is fresh in the minds of Mets fans.

Van Wagenen will always be remembered as the GM who brought in Robinson Cano, who would hardly play, and Jed Lowrie, who would NEVER play, and for giving away Jarrod Kelenic – at the time, the Mets top prospect.