MLB media obsessed with Cohen’s spending
NEW YORK — Not only does money talk, it’s talked about.
Mets boss Steve Cohen’s numbers game, shelling out over $807 million in free agent contracts and adding to that bill with an astronomical luxury tax, has the baseball media sounding a lot more like business reporters.
The timing of the Cohen’s deal with Carlos Correa, allowed the Mets to overshadow 6-7 Aaron Judge’s captaincy anointment Wednesday at the Stadium. The Judge hoopla was designed to capture New York’s sports narrative for 24 hours. Instead, Cohen’s money won the day in all media precincts.
Even the cast of voices, and the production value YES brought to the Judge proceedings, couldn’t out-Cohen, Cohen and the breaking news he bought, er, brought, to Mets World, including all interested parties at SNY.
The baseball media has always been obsessed with who is spending what. That includes baseball’s luxury tax, now named after the Mets owner. You would think that particular story is better suited for Accounting Today magazine.
In contrast, when was the last time you heard Charles Barkley, Stephen A. Smith, or other NBA media types, issue soliloquies, or spend time, dissecting that league’s luxury tax? This, despite the fact that last season, on the way to a championship, Golden State spent an NBA-high $170.3 million in luxury tax. There was not even a peep accusing the Warriors of trying to buy a title. Or proclaiming Warriors majority owner, Joe Lacob, a hero or villain.
Maybe it has to do with a more laissez faire attitude in the NBA when it comes to money, where bench guys routinely earn eye-popping cash.
In the case of Cohen, whose Mets 2023 luxury tax bill is projected — according to Spotrac — to be $113 million, it means more. That’s because of the harsh dichotomy between the Steinbrenner Yankees and the Mets when it came to spending big on free agents.
Despite a World Series appearance in 2015, Mets fans — and some in the media — have effectively played the role of baseball’s downtrodden. Their battle cry was Poor-Me.
Now, thanks to their new leader, the bum is wearing a tuxedo. They celebrate by drilling far down on the numbers, even magnify Cohen’s spending success by already predicting October baseball nearly 10 months out.
That remains to be seen. So do some financial matters. Like which team, Yankees or Mets, will generate largest ticket revenue? Or which network, YES or SNY, will record higher viewership numbers? Will Cohen’s money, and the media’s dwelling on it, bring more advertisers and sponsors to Queens?
Will the large segment of casual fans, who hang out in the middle but are always looking to front-run, now hop on the Mets bandwagon broadening the fan base? Who knows?
SNY’s “Baseball Night in New York” is a go-to show when it comes to getting hardball news and insight from a rotating cast of reporters and analysts.
On Wednesday host Sal Licata could not contain his enthusiasm over Steve Cohen reeling in Carlos Correa. Licata, who also anchors WFAN’s overnight shift, turned up the volume. He was over-the-top, screaming stuff about how the Mets’ day had finally come and how, moving forward, it will always be about “World Series or bust!”
Licata’s pompom waving on a show that has developed credibility was cringe-inducing. Yet while the panel seemed amused, panelist Sweeny Murti — fortunately — brought some balance to interrupt and counter the high-decibel, one-man pep rally.
Murti got the job done using some well-placed sarcasm/humor.
Murti: “Sal, is there really going to be a [Mets] parade or you just marching yourself around the studio?”