Steve Cohen agrees to buy Mets in deal worth over $2.4 billion
Congrats, New York Mets fans, the Wilpons are finally out. The Wilpon family announced Monday they agreed to sell the team to billionaire Steve Cohen. The deal values the Mets at $2.4 billion, according to Newsday.
The news ends negotiations that have lasted months. News broke in December that the Wilpons wanted to sell the team. At that time, Cohen, 64, was considered the leading candidate to buy the Mets. Things got complicated in February, however, and it appeared the sale was dead. That opened the door for other bidders to get involved.
Cohen remained in the bidding, but received competition from a group led by Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez. In August, Cohen’s bid won out, and he entered exclusive negotiations with the team. A month later, both sides agreed to a deal.
The Mets announce that ownership has reached a deal to sell the team to Steve Cohen, who is still subject to approval from MLB owners. pic.twitter.com/friq9MHzwH
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) September 14, 2020
While the Mets and Cohen have agreed on a deal, Cohen isn’t the team’s new owner just yet. He still needs to be approved by 23 of the 30 current MLB owners. The owners usually vote on that matter at their annual meeting in November. It’s unclear whether Cohen will face opposition from the owners.
What does the sale mean for the Mets?
If approved, the Mets would no longer be run by the Wilpons. That’s enough to make a number of Mets fans optimistic about the future.
Is that wise? It’s impossible to tell. It’s worth noting, however, that Cohen has a net worth of $14.1 billion. That’s much higher than the Wilpon family, which has a $500 million net worth.
Because of that, optimistic Mets fans are hoping Cohen will invest more money into the team. There’s hope that the team’s payroll will increase, and that the Mets could become players for big-name free agents. That’s just speculation for now. It will be up to Cohen to show Mets fans just how serious he is about bringing the team another World Series championship.
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