The New York Mets will likely have a new majority owner by the time 2021 kicks off. His name? None other than Great Neck’s Steve Cohen, whose net worth is approximately $14 billion.
The deal to purchase the Mets from the Wilpon family’s Sterling Partners is estimated to be worth $2.475 billion. But he will need to receive approval from 75 percent of the remaining MLB owners (23 out of 29 owners), something Commissioner Rob Manfred believes will happen, making Cohen the richest MLB owner. Sterling is operated by Fred Wilpon, Saul Katz and Jeff Wilpon, Fred’s son. Jeff is also a partner in the UBS Arena at Belmont Park.
“I think he’s going to be able to build a sustained winner, hopefully for years to come,” legendary Mets third baseman David Wright said recently in an interview on WFAN.
Cohen, 64, will usher in a new era for New York sports fans. The billionaire originally made a proposal to buy the Flushing-based team in February, but that deal fell apart. Former Yankees star Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez also made a bid to purchase the club.
Before officially taking over an ownership office at Citi Field, Cohen is already making big promises. He is set on bringing back Sandy Alderson as the team’s president. Alderson was the Mets’ general manager from 2010 until he departed the team in 2018 due to cancer treatment.
Alderson is largely responsible for the Mets’ success when it comes to pitching, making several deals to trade away veteran players for pitching prospects, including Zack Wheeler and Noah Syndergaard. He also selected two-time Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom in the MLB Draft.
This more than likely means current General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen is on his way out. The only major names he’s brought on have been Robinson Canó and Yoenis Céspedes since taking on the job two years ago.
Cohen will reportedly not be afraid to spend money on the team’s roster, either. He originally joined the club in 2012 with an 8 percent stake in the aftermath of the Mets’ mess in the Bernie Madoff scandal.
He is currently the president and CEO of Point72 Asset Management. Of course, he grew up as a Mets fan, making this announcement even more significant for the fanbase.
The Mets missed the MLB Playoffs in the shortened 60-game season, ending the year under .500. But with Cohen’s purchase of the team, the future is very exciting for those in Flushing.
