Just yesterday, it was reported that engaged couple Alex Rodriguez and Jennifer Lopez were raising money to potentially buy the New York Mets. While both have made a fair share of money in their respective fields, neither is worth enough to match Steve Cohen’s previous reported offer of $2.6 billion to buy the team.
The thing is, the Mets may no longer be worth that much.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, all cash flow from the Mets has quickly dried up, putting the Wilpon family in the precarious position of trying to keep operations afloat without incoming revenue. Considering the fact that they were already motivated to sell the team, these latest developments may force the Wilpons to sell soon and at a diminished cost.
According to Thornton McEnery of the New York Post, the Mets may “fall into Rodriguez and Lopez’s laps”, as the price tag for the ballclub is dropping rapidly.
McEnery reports that the couple is trying to form an ownership group of four-to-five people, after retaining JPMorgan Chase to put together their offer. The main “money guy” that has been connected to Rodriguez’s potential ownership group is Miami billionaire Jorge Mas.
Mas was in the running to by the Miami Marlins before Derek Jeter‘s ownership group swooped in to buy the team a few years ago. Mas is also a heavy investor in David Beckham’s Miami-based MLS soccer team, Inter Miami. According to McEnery’s sources, Rodriguez and Mas have many connection points, as both are deeply rooted in Miami.
“He and Alex went to the same high school and [both have a connection with the University of Miami]. They’re birds of a feather.”
Baseball insiders told the New York Post that the Mets value could be cut by a third if only half of the season is played. Right now, experts have valued the Mets at $1.5 billion.
MLB Network’s Jon Heyman conflicted the New York Post’s report on Mas’ interest in being part of Rodriguez’s ownership group, saying that he was in fact approached by A-Rod but declined his offer. Still, finding another partner may not be the most difficult of tasks if Mas is not involved.
According to a Variety report, another potential investor that has come to the surface is Quogue Capital founder Wayne Rothbaum. Like Mas, Rothbaum unsuccessfully tried to get into the bidding on Marlins three years ago as well. The report indicates that Rothbaum has submitted an application to the MLB to be part of the investment group, but he prefers not to be the controlling partner.
Across Rodriguez’s 22-year MLB career, he amassed $480 million in career earnings. In January, Fox Business estimated that Rodriguez was worth north of $300 million, with his fiancee holding a net worth of $400 million. Between Rodriguez, Lopez and a few other key investors, meeting the Wilpon’s diminished asking price could be a feasible task.
The New York Post notes that Rodriguez knows the New York market well after his decade-plus spent playing for the Yankees and Lopez is a Bronx-native. The couple envision the Mets as a brand that they can magnify greatly in the city, while also turning Citi Field into a concert venue akin to Madison Square Garden.
A sale of the team is by no means imminent at this time, but there is clearly some positive momentum leading towards a new high-profile ownership group taking over in Queens.
