Steve Cohen isn’t one to sugarcoat how the Mets’ season has gone.
At the same time, Cohen expressed optimism going forward as he spoke to reporters at Citi Field on Wednesday.
“We might have taken too much risk, when you think about all the changes that were made,” Cohen said. “Whenever there are significant changes, sometimes it takes a while to integrate.”
Photo Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
Despite playing well recently, the Mets entered Wednesday 13 games under .500, 17.5 games out of the division and 11 games out of a Wild Card spot. They have the third-worst record in the National League.
Cohen’s comments coincided with Jorge Polanco hitting the injured list for the second time this season. Polanco was signed to be Pete Alonso‘s replacement at first base. Polanco’s injury-riddled 2026 will conclude with a .148 average and .431 OPS in 37 games. He was worth -1.4 bWAR.
The Mets also let franchise cornerstones like Brandon Nimmo, Jeff McNeil and Edwin Díaz go this offseason. Luis Robert Jr. has had an underwhelming, injury-plagued season. Marcus Semien is having the worst full season of his career, and Devin Williams was so-so before hitting the injured list recently.
As Cohen acknowledged, those risks didn’t work out.
“It’s not easy to come to New York with a big media presence and lots of eyes on you,” Cohen said. “It’s not easy to change teams in general. You have to expect some adjustment process. … And that’s just part of the gig. And unfortunately, I don’t know how to short-circuit that.”
Cohen did, however, maintain his support towards president of baseball operations David Stearns.
“I’m committed to David,” Cohen said. “We’re gonna move forward. And I thought we had a great trade deadline. Listen: David is smart. He knows what he’s doing. He’s very adaptable. He learns from mistakes. That’s what I want in a leader.”
The Mets conceded their chances of competing this season and sold a chunk of their roster ahead of this year’s deadline.
While Jefferson Rojas was the only top-100 prospect they acquired, several of the pieces the Mets got back have been performing well. Billy Amick, Émilien Pitre, Aidan Smith, Gary Gill Hill and others have made immediate impacts in the minor leagues. If nothing else, the Mets deepened their farm system.
“I’m just looking at the results like you’re looking at the results. They look pretty good,” Cohen said. “And it’s over a short period of time. But when you look and see the value we got back — lots of different types of players, which is kind of fun — and it’s a great infusion of young talent in our system. And I’m hoping that that works out.”
The Mets have gone 23-23 since firing Carlos Mendoza and placing Andy Green in the interim manager role.
While the general sense has been that Green would go back to a player development role after this season, Cohen didn’t entirely rule out the possibility of him being considered for the full-time managerial position. Ultimately, it would have to be something Green is interested in.
“I’m gonna take him at face value. He’s telling us that he wants to go back to the front office,” Cohen said. “We’re gonna do a managerial search, and if it turns out he wants to throw his hat into the ring, that would be great.”
One solace the lost season has provided the Mets is the chance to display some of their young talent, getting them comfortable at the major league level. Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing have showcased just some of what this team’s future might look like. Benge, who’s settled into a 110 wRC+ paired with a lethal arm in right field, has put his name in the Rookie of the Year conversation. In the rotation, Nolan McLean and Christian Scott have gotten substantial MLB innings for the first time.
Despite all of the big-league pieces they traded away, the Mets have gone 10-4 since the deadline. They’ve done it without Juan Soto, though they have gotten a productive Francisco Lindor back on the field.
“This year wasn’t great,” Cohen said. “Yes, it is a small sample [since the deadline]. But underneath, I think there’s a lot of things to kind of be excited about. The development of our young players is significant. That creates a nice foundation since next year. It’d be great if we can get Soto and Lindor on the field at the same time; that’d be kind of fun to see and have them play a full season together. That’s obviously impactful.
“We’ve had new players, and they’ve adjusted to New York. And you can imagine them feeling much more comfortable next year. So I think there’s a lot to look forward to here. I see the foundation of something that I think we can get behind. But we’ll see how it goes, right? But I’m getting more optimistic. I like what I see. And hopefully it continues.”
