New York Mets owner Steve Cohen talked to the media on Wednesday, one day after the trade deadline.
The last week has been very revealing when it comes to the Mets’ short and long-term plans.
The short-term idea was to trade some expensive veterans (while eating large portions of their salary) to get exciting prospects for the future.
That meant giving up on 2023: at this point, at 50-57, the Mets are just too far down in the standings.
Since the Mets became soft sellers, they had to talk to Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer about the direction of the franchise first before dealing them.
Cohen revealed a fragment of his talk to Scherzer.
“Steve Cohen: ‘Max asked me straight up if I’d be all-in on free agents, and I couldn’t give him that promise,’” Tim Britton of The Athletic tweeted.
Steve Cohen: “Max asked me straight up if I’d be all-in on free agents, and I couldn’t give him that promise.”
— Tim Britton (@TimBritton) August 2, 2023
Scherzer is 39 years old.
He is looking for one last chance to win the World Series and signed with the Mets in 2022 with that goal in mind.
He was stellar last season with a 2.29 ERA; but is at 4.01 this year as he has encountered all kinds of issues.
The Mets are expected to give playing time to their rookies and young players this year and next, and actually plan to contend again in 2025 or 2026.
They do have a strong farm system after trading Verlander, Scherzer, David Robertson, Tommy Pham, Mark Canha, Dominic Leone, and others.
They netted solid prospects such as Luisangel Acuna, Drew Gilbert, Marco Vargas, Ronald Hernandez, and more.
This is now a younger team with more upside.
They are unlikely to make big expenses in the 2024 free agency period, and that’s why Cohen couldn’t promise Scherzer a competitive team.
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Mets Owner Casts Blame For The 2023 Struggles