According to a formal team announcement (via Dan Kaplan, The Athletic), the New York Mets are continuing their efforts to sell the franchise after an agreed-upon $2.6 billion deal with hedge fund investor Steve Cohn fell through in February.
As per a press release from the team at the time of the fallout, Mets COO Jeff Wilpon vaguely addressed the situation, stating, “We would like to share more information explaining the proposed transaction that has ended, however, due to confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements, we are unable to do so at this time,” also insisting, “We’ll be moving forward to find a new transaction”.
Despite the current economic downturn due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, according to The Athletic, the Mets say their “February 10 statement is intact” and Allen & Co., the firm handling the sale, added via email there’s been “nothing further than the original statement we put out from [Jeff Wilpon] a while back”.
The $2.6 billion the team was set to receive from Cohen would have come equipped with a five-year transition of power — to which Cohen reportedly balked at — and the exclusion of the Mets’ regional sports network, SNY. Since the original agreement broke down, the Mets have been rumored to be inclined to include SNY, but no reports of new prospective buyers have surfaced.
We’ll keep you posted with any new information.
If you have access to The Athletic, Daniel Kaplan — one of the publication’s sports business scribes — adds a healthy dose of knowledgeable insight on the matter. If you’re not a subscriber, The Athletic is offering new users 90 days of free access (link here). Check it out!
