There will be clear winners and losers in the deal that could bring a new majority owner to the Mets in the near future.
Winners would include hedge-fund billionaire Steve Cohen, who is negotiating with the Sterling Partners for a majority stake in the Mets — as much as 80 percent — putting him in position to own the team he grew up rooting for on Long Island.
Also in line to win are Mets owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz as they stand to cash in on an investment with a valuation of $2.6 billion, according to Bloomberg. Wilpon and Katz paid roughly $135 million for previous co-owner Nelson Doubleday’s half of the team in 2002.
Another winner is the fans, hungry for an infusion of cash that would transform the Mets into the major-market level of the Yankees, Red Sox and Dodgers.
The biggest loser in the proposed deal might be general manager Brodie Van Wagenen.
Though Wilpon and his son Jeff Wilpon will maintain the titles CEO and COO, respectively, for five years once the deal is completed, according to the Mets, industry insiders fully expect Cohen, at some point before then, to flex his muscle in baseball decisions (including payroll) and may not see Van Wagenen — a former agent with CAA who has spent the last year running the Mets’ front office — as the right choice to spend that money.
Van Wagenen arrived on a four-year contract worth $10 million, providing some level of security with the Wilpons, who have been loath over the years to fire executives, managers and coaches with money remaining on their contracts. But that could change with Cohen’s involvement.
A source familiar with the negotiations indicated Thursday that while Van Wagenen wasn’t blindsided by the team’s announcement this week (he previously was informed of the possible sale), he clearly didn’t know about a potential ownership change when he arrived to his new position in October last year.
“Short-term, [Van Wagenen] is fine,” the source said. “But I think he’s screwed.”
Van Wagenen’s legacy with the club to this point is the trade last December that acquired Edwin Diaz and Robinson Cano from the Mariners and surrendered prospects Jarred Kelenic and Justin Dunn, in addition to Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak and Gerson Bautista. Last season, Diaz and Cano were significant disappointments for the Mets, and if that doesn’t change in 2020, the GM could be held accountable in the absence of other moves that catapult the club into the postseason.
A key component in the front-office dynamic is special assistant Omar Minaya, who is a friend of Cohen’s dating to the early 2000s. At the time, Minaya was an assistant GM with the team and Cohen a fan who owned a box close to the field at Shea Stadium. The Spanish-speaking Minaya became friendly with the family, including Cohen’s father-in-law, who hails from the Dominican Republic. Minaya has dined on occasion at Cohen’s mansion in Greenwich, Conn., according to sources.
Minaya has spent the last year advising the GM and potentially could serve as Van Wagenen’s lifeline under new ownership. But Minaya could also be in a position to recommend a change in the front office.
“I think Omar is an old-school guy,” said a baseball executive who has known Minaya for several years. “He relates to someone who is a baseball guy. He is not analytically driven, he is not new-age-driven, so if he’s got a say in what’s going on, he is going to want someone who is more of a baseball guy.”
Another source indicated it wouldn’t be surprising if former Mets manager Bobby Valentine, another close friend of Cohen’s socially, serves as an adviser of sorts for the prospective new owner.
“Cohen obviously is a bright guy — you don’t make this kind of money if you’re not,” the baseball executive said. “But the one thing in baseball, it’s a totally different game, so you have to make sure you are getting the right people around you, because you can spend a ton of money and blow it the wrong way.”