The MLB owners have rubber stamped the sale of the Mets to Steve Cohen. He now has a 95% stake in the club. The Wilpon family retains 5%. With the sale, the Mets are valued near $2.5 billion.
Cohen has previously announced he was bringing Sandy Alderson back to be the team president. Yesterday he made some more notable pronouncements—
1) Mets employees who’ve had their pay cut up to 30% this year as part of pandemic cost-cutting will resume receiving their full salaries/wages as of this weekend.
2) Citi Field seasonal employees/subcontractors will receive a $500/month stipend through Opening Day 2021…again starting this weekend. That’s 1000 people he’s helping here.
3) The Mets will “substantially increase” charitable donations as well.
Expect Cohen to realize the Mets play in a large market.
Mets fans everywhere rejoice.
Fan Interference 
Wow. I’m cynical, so I see a great public relations move first, and the humanitarian aspect second. After the recent history of the Wilpon ownership, these moves will go a long way to build fan interest and enthusiasm. But aside from that viewpoint, I also see a whole lot of people who’s worries about financial obligations will be relieved. Mr. Cohen starts out on the right track.
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My relict Met fan brethren up in New York are pretty uniformly pleased. The idea that they now have an owner with verrrrry deep pockets and no Madoff repayments to think about chuffs them greatly. So does the notion the Wilpoons – especially Fred’s cretinous son Jeff – will now be little more than deer ticks on Godzilla’s ass – are out of the picture. Now, of course, the Wilpoons are offering up SNY as well, apparently counseled by someone with a mind in their brain that Cohen can blow it off and start up another sports network out of his pocket change.
I don’t think I’ll become a Mets fan again – I’m too far away now, it’s been too long, and the pong of designatedhitterball makes it all seem like an empty exercise anyway. However, the mere presence of the Wilpoon cackle clan in baseball over the years is enough cause to enjoy watching them slip back into the shadows and dissolve there.
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