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The 2023 season did not turn out the way the New York Mets had envisioned.
After shelling out what is expected to be an MLB record $360 million in payroll for the roster this season, the team is coming off a breaking All-Star with a record of 42-48. The Mets trail 18.5 games behind the National League-leading Atlanta Braves and seven games behind the San Francisco Giants for last place in the National League Championship.
The organization is on track to also owe an MLB record $99 million in a luxury tax.
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However, according to ESPN’s Buster Olney, the Mets will not be sellers at this year’s trade deadline.
Rumors have been swirling for a while that the New York Mets might be looking to dump some of the team’s expensive, but underperforming talent in order to reset the roster and potentially make a run for impending Los Angeles Angels free agent Shohei Ohtani.
Mets owner Steve Cohen said as much during a press conference in late June to discuss the team’s struggles.
Cohen said that general manager Billy Eppler and manager Buck Showalter would not be fired “at all” during the season. However, the owner said he is willing to forgo the salaries of underperforming veterans if they are able to regain quality prospects in the trade this summer.
Cohen said this about the struggles of the New York Mets:
“It’s been incredibly frustrating. I watch every game. I see what happens. I hope we can make it right. Listen, we’ve got quality players. For some reason, we’re not playing… It’s kind of weird. It’s really weird for for me “.
However, since the owner talked about his safety, the team has once dropped less than . 500 a game and 8.5 games behind the Braves.
The Mets open the second half of the season by hosting the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field in a three-game series this weekend.
Steve Cohen took complete control of the New York Mets in 2020
Cohen, who has made billions as a hedge fund manager, became a minority owner of the Mets in 2012. At the end of the 2020 season, MLB approved his purchase of back-to-back interests in the team from previous owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz.
He showed no remorse about spending money on improving the team in the hunt for a World Series. This season, the New York Mets broke the previous league salary record of $291 million set by the 2015 Dodgers.
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