Mar
19
2012

Rejuvenated Mets Owners Pay Off MLB and Bank of America Loans

An article by Tyler Moore

Blue skies, smiling on me...

According to the New York Daily News, the Wilpons were quite busy this evening. They finished deals to sell 12 minority shares - a $240 million cash infusion – and they have taken care of a few debts as well.

One debt that the Wilpons paid back was their debt to the MLB. That full debt was a total of $25 million.

Another debt they took care of was their debt to Bank of America. They owed the Bank $40 million.

All this coming after the Wilpons reached a settlement with the trustee before their case officially went to trial.

This really sets up the Wilpons being in charge for the foreseeable future, contradicting much of what had been reported by various media outlets.

By repaying these debts, especially the one to MLB, they have likely shown Selig that they can remain fiscally solvent and add money into the team when the right deals and players become available.

Hopefully that will be the case.

Thoughts from Joe D.

I wrote this in a post from February 9th:

Don’t wish ill will on a family who has done so much good for the team, and this city, and for veterans, just because Omar Minaya signed Jason Bay or Steve Phillips traded for Mo Vaughn. Let’s use some common sense and know that there is a difference between this legal matter and the operational choices the current Mets owners have made. It’s a vast difference, and one should have nothing to do with the other.

I have my opinion on all of this. I posted repeatedly not to believe all this bankruptcy stuff everyone is circulating, and that the demise of the Wilpons has been greatly exaggerated. I’ve said again and again that it was all just wishful thinking. I couldn’t care less that it put me in the minority and on the firing block, I blog for my benefit not yours. So let me close this out in the form that some of you will find somewhat familiar – a Haiku:

Justice will vindicate.
It was all folly.
You’ll see the rising son.

About the Author: Tyler Moore

Tyler is a lifelong Mets fan and tries to attend a few Mets games each season. Among the most notable games he's attended are Mike Piazza's first game in 1998, Todd Pratt's postseason homer game in 1999, and Mike Piazza's last game as a Met in 2005. He's been blogging about the Mets since 2009. He also Co-Created and Co-Hosts the Mets Madness Podcast.

6 Comments + Add Comment

Alex68 March 20, 2012 at 7:40 am

All the money they were pocketing it’s been used to pay off debts… Very nice i guess… Still 69-93 this year and less than 2 million people in the ballpark.. that is my prediction…
srt March 20, 2012 at 8:04 am

Just goes to show you that the media doesn’t always have all the details.
WIlpons managed to have 5 more investors waiting in the wings that no one reported on.
Tells me that none of us are ever going to know exactly what went on, what’s going.

Wilpons still have a ton of debt. Almost too much to sell and come out on top.
So in my simple business mind, the only way to start reducing that debt is to get revenues back up.
The higher the revenues, the better the team must be, right?
Here’s hoping both happen sooner rather than later.
Brandon Butler March 20, 2012 at 8:18 am

Thats great! Now they can focus on the future and build an even better team for 2013-14.
- Alex68 March 20, 2012 at 8:41 am
  
  So basically you’re conceiding the 2012 season?? SMH… But it comes as no surprise, you’re not alone brandon… We’ll see the genius is action as we all wanted him to be right??
Des March 20, 2012 at 8:43 am

I wish the Wilpons the best of luck to go along with all their hard work. Sometimes decent people like the Wilpons are viewed with suspicion by those folks whose lives are not as rewarding. The Wilpons now deserve our complete support.
GW March 20, 2012 at 9:02 am

Well the team is going to lose money again this year as revenue will be lower than last year as the team slips into at best, second to last place in the NL East… at best… so they aren’t going to have payroll flexibility going forward either.

I know they cut the payroll 50 million or so, but they lost 70 million last year on inevitably higher revenues.

They may love the team but they love themselves more, its being selfish keeping a team together that’s an embarrassment like this.

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