Recapping The Mets’ Spending Splurge So Far This Off-Season

General manager Billy Eppler and the New York Mets came into the off-season with a roster consisting of several holes that needed plugging. Several key contributors from the 101-win team in 2022 were set to become free agents. This left a barren rotation and bullpen, as well as an offense that was currently without one of the best center fielders in the game.

In order to put together a team that resembled anything like the 2022 team, or at the least, a competitive ball club for the 2023 season, splurging in free agency was a must. Well, the Mets have answered the bell and then some. They have done the definition of splurging thus far this off-season.

The Culprits

As of now, the Mets have handed out six noteworthy contracts this off-season. Each of which will surely help the team once again be a World Series contender in 2023.

It started with re-signing one of New York’s own in Edwin Díaz. Díaz, the best closer in the game, scored a five-year, $102-million deal with the Mets before free agency began. Then, free agency officially began, and that is when the real fun started.

The first big free agent contract came after the Texas Rangers signed Mets’ franchise cornerstone, Jacob deGrom. The Mets came to agreement with future Hall of Fame pitcher Justin Verlander, a deal worth two years and $86.6 million with a third-year vesting option. Replacing the best pitcher in the league, when healthy, with the best pitcher in the AL last season, the Mets once again showed they were not fooling around.

Next up, was a potential under-the-radar signing, as New York brought in a reliable veteran starting pitcher José Quintana. Quintana agreed to a two-year, $26 million to come in and serve as a much-needed bottom-of-the-rotation fixture. New York also made a relatively cheaper signing by bringing in potential set-up man David Robertson, who was signed to a one-year, $10-million deal. This is vital given the Mets legitimately lost almost every key contributor from last year’s bullpen outside two individuals (Díaz and Drew Smith).

Two of the other larger contracts the Mets dished out were to one internal free agent and one external. Brandon Nimmo was brought back via a lengthy eight-year, $162-million contract. Meanwhile, the latest splash was a five-year, $75 million deal with Japanese superstar pitcher Kodai Senga, solidifying the team’s newly rebuilt rotation.

In total, across these six contracts, the Mets have dished out $461.6 million total. The annual figure is about $129 million in new payroll for the 2023 season. The Mets and owner Steve Cohen are serious about winning and contending for the World Series every year, this off-season is another example of such.

The Ripple Effect

As has been well documented, baseball does not have a true salary cap, yet there are specific tax-related penalties for overspending. As of now, the Mets’ current payroll for 2023 is estimated to be around $ 345 million (this includes impending arbitration cases among other expenses). This figure blasts through the three levels of tax, including the highest $293-million threshold which was renamed the “Steve Cohen Tax,” which was named that way to help deter Mets’ owner Steve Cohen from spending at an absurd rate. Well, guess what? It did not work.

Add in these aforementioned levied taxes, which total about $78 million, and the Mets are looking at a total payroll around $420 million. This is an absurd figure and by far the largest in baseball currently, and, for that matter, of all time: the next closest, the New York Yankees, trail by roughly $80 million.

Another absurd statistic to quantify the Mets’ $360-million spending spree since deGrom left: the $78-million tax the Mets will have to pay is greater than all of the following team’s payrolls combined: Kansas City Royals, Tampa Bay Rays Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore Orioles, and Oakland Athletics. What the Mets are doing is not only a further testament to Steve Cohen’s commitment to winning, but absolutely unheard of.

Final Thoughts

The craziest aspect of all this, is do not expect the Mets to be done. They still have a few holes in the bullpen and could use a power-hitting bat to help with the designated hitter position. Adding these pieces would only just increase their record-busting payroll. Again, all this has just further demonstrated Mets’ owner, Steve Cohen’s, commitment to winning. Something he made very clear when he bought the team just a few years ago.