Mets continue to drift into Steve Cohen era

All roads lead to Steve Cohen. That statement was true in December, when the Wilpons announced they were preparing to sell an 80% majority stake in the Mets to the hedge-fund billionaire; and it remains true now, as Cohen finalizes the transfer of power.

As the Daily News reported, Cohen won the final bid and entered exclusive negotiations to buy the Mets two weeks ago. The Wilpons want to sell before the end of the year and Cohen is “almost done” with the process as of Thursday, according to a source.

The final step is the MLB owners’ vote in November. Cohen is expected to secure the necessary three-quarters approval from 23 of 30 owners, a source confirmed Thursday. The owners would not risk the Mets going for a lower price than the expected $2.5 billion, which would negatively affect all of their franchise values.

As for Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez’s exhausted bid? The star couple claims it still has a shot — particularly with Lopez centering her strategy on being the first Latina to own an MLB team.

As one source said, “it’s total (BS).” Rodriguez and Lopez’s bid was nowhere near Cohen’s, as far as cash on the line, and the couple would not be able to run the Mets with the franchise’s debt. Rodriguez’s group, which included Vitamin Water co-founder Mike Repole and Florida Panthers owner Vincent Viola, was highly leveraged by JP Morgan Chase and still, Team A-Rod was nowhere near Cohen insofar as capital.

Saul Katz, president of the Mets and brother-inlaw to Fred Wilpon, was never going to accept less cash. As the News reported, A-Rod’s principal ally in his bid for the Mets was Jeff Wilpon who did not want to sell to Cohen under any circumstances. But Katz — who owns 50% of the team — was adamant about wanting to get the most money for the team.

Rodriguez and Lopez are riding out the final leg of their publicity stunt before they wave the white flag for good. Cohen was always going to win out against any competitor simply in terms of cash. Cohen is reported by Forbes to be worth roughly $14 billion.

Cohen is not only expected to get the approval from MLB owners, but he is better prepared to handle the Mets’ debt (estimated between $90 million and $100 million pre-pandemic) and grow the team for the future.

The Mets are Cohen’s white whale. He publicly entered negotiations with the Wilpons 10 months ago, when his stake in the Mets was expected to go from limited control to 80%. The deal fell apart in February due to disagreements over Jeff Wilpon’s continued involvement, as the News reported at the time. That same month, the Wilpon/Katz family hired investment bank Allan & Co. and announced it would continue efforts to sell the team.

Cohen, a childhood Mets fan from Great Neck, Long Island, made another bid, the strongest offer, to buy the Mets in July. The billionaire remained the heavyweight.

Cohen’s takeover as majority owner will end the Wilpon/ Katz ownership reign that has been involved in team control since 1980. Fred Wilpon, Nelson Doubleday and John O. Pickett bought the Mets for $21 million that year, when Wilpon owned just 1% of the team. In 1986, he exercised a clause in the deal that let him buy the team. Wilpon finally became the sole owner of the team in 2002.