The NY Mets Ownership Change Could Not Have Happened at a More Opportune Time, Here's Why

Steve Cohen is now the owner of the New York Mets. Photo: Yahoo! Sports

Now that the sale of the New York Mets franchise is finally official (no more Alex Rodriguez and Jeniffer Lopez meddling with the process, no more ownership pact groups trying to flip the franchise, no more deals falling through or votes to hurdle, no more legal mumbo-jumbo, no more Bill de Blasio being a total jackass... well I can't guarantee that last one, and of course, NO MORE WILPONS), it's important to understand the ownership change's effect on the rest the league.

Mets fans have been waiting for this day for the better part of the last decade, maybe longer, but it actually could not have come at a more advantageous time for Steve Cohen and this new regime. As we all know, the nation has been reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, and that includes the sports industry and the MLB, which has lost billions in ticket/fan revenue despite playing a shortened 60-game season that just concluded a few days ago. There is only one team out of 30 that has not really been hurt too badly by this disaster, the New York Mets.

For those who have not been following the story closely, the Mets were just sold to hedge-fund billionaire and native New Yorker Steve Cohen. Supposedly, Cohen has been a lifelong fan of the team, and he pretty much stopped at nothing to acquire it from the Wilpons. The final sale was for 2.4 billion dollars, which is actually a relatively small portion of Cohen's net worth ($14.1 billion in February 2020, rumored $14.5 billion now). This deal made the New York Mets the richest team in all of baseball (yes, that's correct... not the Yankees, nor the Dodgers, not the Phillies or Red Sox either, the Mets).

Obviously, just having Cohen as your owner in general could be looked at as a major advantage. Baseball has no hard salary cap like the NFL, so you can really spend as much or as little money as you want, if you're willing to pay the Competitive Balance Tax (now set at a cap threshold of $208 million). The teams that spend big in the MLB usually win games, it's just a fact. It doesn't guarantee a World Series or even a playoff berth, but there's no question that it helps. The Mets have not only entered this elite circle of MLB owners that can afford to pay this luxury tax if need be, they are now sitting at the head of the table.

This would have been huge news for the Mets franchise any offseason, but during the 2020-21 offseason, it's almost unfair. Franchises were crippled by COVID financially. According to an article by Biz Journals, no team lost more revenue than the New York Yankees (a projected $437,867,856). The Steinbrenners entire corporation is also based around the Yankees franchise, unlike someone like Cohen who has many other assets and business ventures. The Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros rounded out the top five based on 2019 attendance numbers. Even the last team on the list, the Miami Marlins, lost over $37 million in revenue (and those franchises lower on this list have less financial backing to supplement losses). The Mets themselves were seventh on the list, but it's important to rememeber that most of these losses hurt the pockets of the Wilpons and their co-owners, not Steve Cohen. Sure, the franchise has encurred a good deal of debt, some of which Cohen will take on, but an investor of this magnitude knows you have to spend money to make money. He has already begun to do so on his first day, rehiring Mets staff that were laid off and restoring pandemic relief for all employees. This included $17.5 million in grant money to aid New York City's small business owners.

So, how is all of this an opportune advantage for the Mets? This MLB Free Agency period is set up to be one of the most fiscally conservative in years. Franchises may make a joint effort to lower contract offers and player salaries as a whole for any and all free agents. We have already seen the cuts begin this week, as an unusually large number of players were denied options and made free agents. Steve Cohen however has money to blow. It'll be interesting to see how aggressive Cohen and Sandy Alderson (former Mets GM that led them to the 2015 World Series, rehired by Cohen to be President of Baseball Operations) will be, but the first step is to rebuild this organization. Assuming current general manager Brodie Van Wagenen is fired and the Mets clean house, there's a lot to be done before free agency begins. Fans will at least be confident knowing that Alderson is the man to do it.

Which top free agent will be a Met in 2021? Photo: Sporting News/Getty Images

Then the real fun begins. The Mets have already been tied to free agent superstars like J.T. Realmuto, George Springer and Trevor Bauer (the top three of this 2021 class), but they have also been linked to players on the trade block like Francisco Lindor and Nolan Arenado. An acquisition like Lindor would most likely lead to a long-term extension in orange and blue, while Arenado's deal is already in place (the Rockies just don't want to pay it). There's really no telling what Steve Cohen might do, but that's a major part of this new incredible feeling that Mets fans have never experienced before. Whatever this front office decides, no one else in the MLB can afford to stand in their way right now, AKA, the Mets are calling the shots in 2021... and the foreseeable future.